CABINET OFFICE

Electoral Register

Chris Ruane: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office pursuant to the answer of 25 November 2013, Official Report, columns 80-1W, on Electoral Register, if his Department will use information gathered on the amount spent by local authorities on voter registration to inform policy on registration levels.

Greg Clark: The Government do not hold information on the amounts spent by local authorities on electoral registration.

Employment: Brigg

Andrew Percy: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many disabled people were in paid work in Brigg and Goole constituency in each of the last five years.

Nick Hurd: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	Letter from Joe Grice, dated March 2014
	On behalf of the Director General for the Office for National Statistics (ONS), I have been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question asking the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many disabled people were in paid work in Brigg and Goole constituency in each of the last five years. (194258)
	The ONS compiles employment statistics for local areas from the Annual Population Survey (APS) following International Labour Organisation (ILO) definitions. However, estimates of the number of disabled people in employment in Brigg and Goole constituency are not available due to small sample sizes.
	National and local area estimates for many labour market statistics, including employment, unemployment and claimant count are available on the NOMIS website at
	http://www.nomisweb.co.uk

Older People

Gregory Campbell: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what estimate the Government have made of the likely change in the number of people in the UK who will be aged 90 years and over between 2012 and 2023.

Nick Hurd: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	Letter from Caron Walker, dated March 2014
	On behalf of the Director General for the Office for National Statistics I have been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question asking the Minister for the Cabinet Office what estimate the Government has made of the likely change in the number of people in the UK who will be aged 90 years and over between 2012 and 2023.
	Estimates of future population are available as population projections. The most recent national population projections are based on mid-year population estimates for 2012 published in 2013. They project the number of persons aged 90 and over in the United Kingdom to increase by 311,000, from 513,000 in mid-2012 to 824,000 by mid 2023.
	National population projections are not forecasts and do not attempt to predict the impact of future government policies, changing economic circumstances or the capacity of an area to accommodate a change in population. They provide an indication of the future size and age structure of the population if recent demographic trends continued.

Rents: Greater London

Fiona Mactaggart: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office if he will request that the Office for National Statistics publishes the evidential basis for the comment by the Minister for Housing of 3 March 2014, Official Report, column 606, on changes in rents in London.

Nick Hurd: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have the asked the authority to reply.
	Letter from Joe Grice, dated March 2014
	On behalf of the Director General for the Office for National Statistics (ONS), I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question asking the Minister for the Cabinet Office if the ONS will publish the evidential basis for the comment by the Minister for Housing of 3 March 2014, Official Report, column 606, on changes in rents in London (194170).
	ONS publishes the experimental Index of Private Housing Rental Prices (IPHRP), which tracks the changes in the price charged for renting private housing. The IPHRP excludes properties rented by housing associations and local authorities, and any other forms of social housing. The IPHRP measures the change in the price of renting residential property from private landlords, thereby allowing a comparison between the prices tenants are charged in the current month compared with the same month in the previous year. The index does not measure the change in advertised rental prices.
	The available information is provided in the table for the period January 2011 to December 2013.
	
		
			 Experimental index of private housing rental prices, percentage change over 12 months 
			 Not seasonally adjusted 
			    Countries 
			   Great Britain England Wales Scotland 
			 Percentage change on a year earlier     
			 2011 Jan — 0.3 0.3 — 
			  Feb — 0.4 0.3 — 
			  Mar — 0.5 0.4 — 
			  Apr — 0.6 0.4 — 
			  May — 0.8 0.5 — 
			  Jun — 0.9 0.5 — 
			  Jul — 1.0 0.7 — 
			  Aug — 1.1 0.6 — 
			  Sep — 1.2 0.6 — 
			  Oct — 1.2 0.7 — 
			  Nov — 1.3 0.8 — 
		
	
	
		
			  Dec — 1.3 0.8 — 
			       
			 2012 Jan 1.4 1.4 0.7 1.3 
			  Feb 1.4 1.4 0.8 1.3 
			  Mar 1.4 1.4 0.7 1.2 
			  Apr 1.4 1.5 0.8 1.2 
			  May 1.4 1.5 0.7 1.2 
			  Jun 1.4 1.5 0.8 1.1 
			  Jul 1.4 1.5 0.6 1.0 
			  Aug 1.4 1.5 0.7 0.8 
			  Sep 1.4 1.5 0.8 0.5 
			  Oct 1.4 1.5 0.8 0.4 
			  Nov 1.4 1.5 0.7 0.3 
			  Dec 1.4 1.5 0.8 0.4 
		
	
	
		
			       
			 2013 Jan 1.4 1.5 1.0 0.4 
			  Feb 1.4 1.4 1.1 0.5 
			  Mar 1.3 1.4 1.2 0.6 
			  Apr 1.3 1.3 1.4 0.8 
			  May 1.3 1.3 1.5 1.0 
			  Jun 1.2 1.2 1.5 1.2 
			  Jul 1.2 1.2 1.4 1.2 
			  Aug 1.2 1.1 1.3 1.3 
			  Sep 1.2 1.1 1.2 1.4 
			  Oct 1.1 1.1 1.2 1.4 
			  Nov 1.1 1.0 1.2 1.3 
			  Dec 1.0 1.0 1.2 1.3 
		
	
	
		
			 Not seasonally adjusted 
			   Regions   
			   North East North West Yorkshire and the Humber East Midlands West Midlands East London South East South West GB1 England1 
			 Percentage change on a year earlier            
			 2011 Jan 0.1 0.4 0.4 -0.1 0.3 0.2 0.4 0.4 0.1 — 0.3 
			  Feb 0.2 0.4 0.4 0.0 0.3 0.2 0.5 0.5 0.2 — 0.3 
			  Mar 0.2 0.4 0.5 0.1 0.3 0.3 0.6 0.6 0.3 — 0.4 
			  Apr 0.3 0.5 0.5 0.2 0.4 0.4 0.8 0.7 0.4 — 0.5 
			  May 0.4 0.6 0.5 0.3 0.5 0.6 1.0 0.9 0.5 — 0.6 
			  Jun 0.4 0.6 0.5 0.4 0.6 0.6 1.2 1.1 0.6 — 0.7 
			  Jul 0.4 0.7 0.6 0.5 0.6 0.7 1.5 1.1 0.7 — 0.8 
			  Aug 0.4 0.7 0.6 0.6 0.7 0.8 1.7 1.1 0.8 — 0.8 
			  Sep 0.4 0.7 0.7 0.6 0.6 0.8 1.8 1.2 0.7 — 0.8 
			  Oct 0.4 0.7 0.7 0.7 0.7 0.9 1.9 1.3 0.8 — 0.9 
			  Nov 0.4 0.7 0.5 0.7 0.7 1.0 2.0 1.4 0.9 — 0.9 
			  Dec 0.3 0.7 0.6 0.7 0.7 1.0 2.1 1.4 0.9 — 0.9 
			              
			 2012 Jan 0.3 0.8 0.7 0.7 0.7 1.0 2.2 1.5 0.9 1.0 1.0 
			  Feb 0.2 0.8 0.6 0.8 0.7 1.1 2.2 1.5 0.9 1.0 1.0 
			  Mar 0.2 0.8 0.7 0.8 0.8 1.1 2.3 1.5 0.9 1.0 1.0 
			  Apr 0.1 0.7 0.7 0.8 0.8 1.1 2.3 1.5 0.9 1.0 1.0 
			  May 0.1 0.7 0.6 0.8 0.7 1.0 2.4 1.4 0.9 1.0 1.0 
			  Jun 0.1 0.7 0.6 0.8 0.8 1.0 2.4 1.4 0.9 1.0 0.9 
			  Jul 0.0 0.7 0.6 0.7 0.8 1.1 2.4 1.4 0.9 0.9 0.9 
			  Aug 0.0 0.7 0.7 0.7 0.7 1.1 2.4 1.4 0.8 0.9 0.9 
			  Sep -0.1 0.6 0.6 0.8 0.7 1.0 2.4 1.4 0.9 0.9 0.9 
			  Oct -0.1 0.6 0.7 0.8 0.7 1.0 2.5 1.4 0.9 0.9 0.9 
			  Nov -0.1 0.5 0.7 0.8 0.7 1.0 2.5 1.3 0.9 0.8 0.9 
			  Dec -0.1 0.5 0.7 0.8 0.6 1.0 2.5 1.4 0.9 0.9 0.9 
			              
			 2013 Jan -0.1 0.5 0.7 0.7 0.6 1.0 2.5 1.3 0.9 0.8 0.9 
			  Feb -0.1 0.5 0.7 0.7 0.6 0.9 2.4 1.3 0.9 0.8 0.8 
			  Mar -0.1 0.5 0.7 0.7 0.6 0.9 2.3 1.3 0.9 0.8 0.8 
		
	
	
		
			  Apr -0.1 0.4 0.7 0.7 0.6 0.9 2.3 1.2 0.9 0.8 0.8 
			  May -0.1 0.4 0.7 0.6 0.6 0.8 2.2 1.2 0.9 0.8 0.8 
			  Jun 0.0 0.4 0.6 0.6 0.5 0.8 2.1 1.1 0.9 0.8 0.8 
			  Jul 0.1 0.4 0.6 0.6 0.5 0.7 1.9 1.1 0.9 0.8 0.7 
			  Aug 0.1 0.3 0.6 0.6 0.5 0.8 1.9 1.1 0.9 0.8 0.7 
			  Sep 0.1 0.4 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.8 1.8 1.1 1.0 0.8 0.7 
			  Oct 0.2 0.4 0.5 0.5 0.4 0.8 1.7 1.1 0.9 0.8 0.7 
			  Nov 0.2 0.4 0.5 0.5 0.4 0.7 1.6 1.1 0.9 0.8 0.7 
			  Dec 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5 0.4 0.7 1.6 1.0 0.9 0.8 0.7 
			 1 Excluding London Source: Office for National Statistics.

COMMUNITIES AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT

Housing: Carbon Emissions

Cathy Jamieson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government when he will publish the Government’s response to the consultation on their commitment to implement zero carbon homes by 2016.

Stephen Williams: The Government are currently considering the responses to the consultation on “Next steps to zero carbon homes—Allowable Solutions” and will publish their response shortly.

Land: Contamination

Joan Walley: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the answer of 28 January 2014, Official Report, column 476W, on land: contamination, what proportion of the revenue support grant arises from a calculation of the cost to local authorities of fulfilling their duties under part 2A of the Environmental Protection Act 1990.

Brandon Lewis: Revenue support grant is not ring-fenced. It is an unhypothecated block grant and it is therefore not possible to break it down for any particular category of funding. From April 2013, the new business rates retention scheme also allows local authorities to retain a portion of business rates collected.

DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER

Constituencies

Chris Ruane: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister pursuant to the answer of 12 June 2012, Official Report, column 444W, on constituencies, what comparative assessment he has made of the accuracy of the (a) electoral register and (b) census.

Greg Clark: Using population figures derived from census data would not provide a better basis for a review of constituency boundaries than using the electoral register. The electoral register is updated annually, whereas the census takes place every ten years; in addition, census figures will include persons who are not eligible to register to vote, for example on grounds of citizenship or age.

Devolution and Decentralisation

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister What recent discussions he has had with ministerial colleagues about the Government’s policy on devolution and decentralisation.

Nicholas Clegg: I meet regularly with ministerial colleagues to discuss this Government's policy of decentralising responsibility to the most appropriate levels.

Electoral Register

Chris Ruane: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister pursuant to the answer of 24 January 2013, Official Report, column 392W, on the electoral register if he will place in the Library a copy of the guidelines for the issuing of fixed penalty notices for non-registration.

Greg Clark: Guidance from the Electoral Commission on the use of civil penalties for failure to respond to a notice of requirement to register was published in September 2013.
	I have placed a copy in the Library of the House.

Electoral Register

Chris Ruane: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister pursuant to the answer of 27 January 2014, Official Report, column 386W, on the electoral register, what is the (a) earliest and (b) latest age a person is allocated their national insurance number; and what the earliest date is that an attainer can be registered to vote.

Greg Clark: National insurance numbers are sent automatically when individuals reach the age of 15 years and 9 months. There is no upper age limit to apply for a national insurance number.
	The law provides that an attainer will be included on the register if they will reach the age of 18 before the end of a 12-month period starting from the next 1 December after the application is made.

Electoral Register

Chris Ruane: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister pursuant to the answer of 28 January 2014, Official Report, columns 509-10W, on the electoral register, with which national organisations his Department is working to encourage people to register to vote.

Greg Clark: Five national organisations have received funding as part of the Government's measures to maximise voter registration.
	The Government are working with a number of other groups such as the British Youth Council and Operation Black Vote.

Electoral Register

Chris Ruane: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister pursuant to the answer of 20 May 2013, Official Report, column 443W, on electoral register, what progress he has made with private sector credit reference agencies on ensuring the completeness and accuracy of the electoral register.

Greg Clark: The Government are using public data to confirm the vast majority of electors on the register when the transition to individual electoral registration takes place this year.
	There are no plans to use private sector credit reference agency data.

Electoral Register: Fraud

Chris Ruane: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister with reference to the answer of 3 September 2012, Official Report, columns 93-4W, on electoral register: fraud, what assessment he has made of the reasons there have been no successful prosecutions for postal vote fraud since 2011.

Greg Clark: The Government have made no such assessment.

Electoral Register: Fraud

Chris Ruane: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister with reference to the answer of 19 June 2012, Official Report, columns 923-24W, on electoral register: fraud, how many successful prosecutions for electoral registration fraud there were in (a) 2012, (b) 2013 and (c) 2014 to date.

Greg Clark: The Government do not collect this data.

Electoral Register: Northern Ireland

Chris Ruane: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister pursuant to the answer of 22 January 2014, Official Report, column 189W, on the electoral register: Northern Ireland, if he will discuss the lessons from the registration for schools programme in Northern Ireland with the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland.

Greg Clark: I have discussed the Northern Ireland schools initiative with the Minister of State, Northern Ireland Office, my right hon. Friend the Member for South Leicestershire (Mr Robathan).

Electoral Register: Young People

Chris Ruane: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister pursuant to the answer of 28 January 2014, Official Report, column 510W, on the electoral register: young people, how the £4.2 million funding to maximise the rate of voter registration ahead of the transition to individual electoral registration has been spent; and what measures are in place to monitor the effectiveness of this spending.

Greg Clark: Funding has been provided to all 363 local authorities and valuation joint boards in Great Britain, and five national organisations, to support the cost of activities for maximising registration as part of the transition to individual electoral registration.
	Guidance has been made available to support them in evaluating the success of activity delivered through this funding. Government officials will continue to work closely with funding recipients to monitor and measure the outcomes.

HEALTH

NHS: Working Hours

Charlotte Leslie: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what progress has been made by the taskforce reviewing the effects of the Working Time Directive on the NHS.

Daniel Poulter: There are significant clinical concerns about the effect that the European working time directive has on continuity of care for patients and the quality of training for doctors. Therefore we have set up an independent taskforce chaired by Norman Williams, president of the Royal College of Surgeons. The taskforce will report shortly.

NHS

David Tredinnick: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he has taken to improve patient choice in the NHS.

Norman Lamb: We are committed to patients having greater choice and control over their health care. Today, we will bring parity to patient's choice of provider in mental and physical health, and in October this year, we will enable patients to register with GP practices out-of-area, and introduce legal rights to have personal health budgets.

General Practitioners: Rural Areas

Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if his Department will provide support for small rural GP surgeries additional to that provided through the new GP surgery funding formula.

Daniel Poulter: The Department recognises that the withdrawal of the minimum practice income guarantee (MPIG) for general practices has raised concerns about the viability of some small practices. That is why we are taking the next seven years to implement the change to MPIG funding fully. Phasing the changes over this period will allow the minority of practices that lose funding to adjust gradually to the reduction in payments.
	NHS England area teams are working with the small number of practices which are particularly affected. They are considering whether different arrangements are needed to ensure there are appropriate primary medical services for local populations.

Abortion

Jim Dobbin: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what evidence his Department has assessed on whether giving birth to a baby of a particular gender constitutes a greater risk to the mother’s physical or mental health than termination of the pregnancy;
	(2)  what steps he is taking to ensure that the British Pregnancy Advisory Service is not undertaking abortions based on gender.

Jane Ellison: Abortion on the grounds of gender alone is illegal. The 1967 Abortion Act states that two practitioners have to be
	“of the opinion, formed in good faith”
	that the woman has grounds for an abortion according to the criteria set out in that Act.
	The Department has made this position clear to all providers, including the British Pregnancy Advisory Service, and will do so again in the forthcoming further guidance.

Abortion

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Congleton of 25 February 2014, Official Report, column 156W, on sex-selective abortion, if he will ensure that the Government’s forthcoming guidance on compliance with the Abortion Act 1967 addresses the question of whether or not it is necessary for registered medical practitioners to see a woman in order to form an opinion in good faith that the continuance of the pregnancy would adversely affect her mental or physical health; and if he will make a statement.

Jane Ellison: The purpose of the guidance is to clarify for medical practitioners what is required of them when making a decision under the Abortion Act. This guidance is currently in development and will be published in due course.

Abortion

Jim Dobbin: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the impartiality of abortion counselling advice provided by Marie Stopes and the British Pregnancy Advisory Service.

Jane Ellison: Guidance on the provision of non-judgmental counselling was included in the Government’s Framework for Sexual Health Improvement published in March 2013.

Abortion

Jim Dobbin: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many abortion notification HSA4 forms have been referred to (a) to the General Medical Council and (b) the police following scrutiny by his Department since 2006.

Jane Ellison: There have been no referrals to the General Medical Council nor to the police in relation to HSA4 forms submitted to the chief medical officer.

Abortion

Jim Dobbin: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Congleton of 20 March 2014, Official Report, column 722W, on abortion, on how many occasions departmental medical practitioners have requested further details from a patient's medical records via the doctor approving termination in each of the last five years for which records are available.

Jane Ellison: This information is not recorded.

Air Pollution: Death

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate his Department has made of the number of deaths attributable to long-term exposure to particularate air pollution in each of the last five years.

Jane Ellison: In 2010, the Department of Health's expert advisory committee on the medical effects of air pollutants published an estimate of the mortality effect in 2008 of long-term exposure to particulate air pollution arising from human activities. The mortality burden for the United Kingdom was estimated as an effect equivalent to nearly 29,000 deaths.
	Estimates of the fraction of mortality in English local authority areas in 2010 and 2011 attributable to long-term exposure to particulate air pollution arising from human activities are published by Public Health England as one of the indicators in the Department's Public Health Outcomes Framework. For England as a whole, this figure is approximately 5.5%.

All-Party Groups

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what his Department’s policy is on allowing officials to appear before all-party parliamentary groups.

Daniel Poulter: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by the Minister for the Cabinet Office and Paymaster General, my right hon. Friend the Member for Horsham (Mr Maude), on 26 March 2014, Official Report, column 300W.

Ambulance Services

Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  if he will estimate the resource implications of requiring all ambulance trusts to meet category A eight-minute response time in all rural locations;
	(2)  what comparative assessment he has made of the performance of ambulance trusts serving predominantly (a) rural and (b) urban areas against the (i) eight-minute and (ii) 19-minute response time targets for category A patients;
	(3)  what plans he has to review ambulance response targets for category A and category C call-outs;
	(4)  if he will review the (a) response time targets and (b) resources available for ambulance trusts which serve largely or predominantly rural areas;
	(5)  if he will make a comparative assessment of response (a) outcomes and (b) times for category A calls for ambulance trusts in (i) rural and (ii) urban locations.

Jane Ellison: No comparative assessment has been made of the performance of ambulance trusts serving predominantly (a) rural and (b) urban areas against the (i) eight-minute and (ii) 19-minute response time targets for category A patients because ambulance trusts are not confined to given areas and so can and do work across locations, including across urban and rural areas.
	A comparative assessment of response (a) outcomes and (b) times for category A calls for ambulance trusts in (i) rural and (ii) urban locations will not be made because data on ambulance performance are collected at national and trust level and as a result do not distinguish between rural and urban areas. Previous ambulance response time standards based on rural and urban areas were discontinued in the early 2000s, partly due to definitional issues and inconsistency of response.
	Work is currently being undertaken collaboratively between the Department and NHS England on how data can possibly be used differently to provide more insight into any variations in performance at a more in-depth level. However, it is important to recognise that ambulance performance data sit within a suite of data, including clinical outcome indicators, collected to provide a richer picture of the delivery of services to patients across the field of urgent and emergency care.
	No estimate will be made of the resource implications of requiring all ambulance trusts to meet category A eight-minute response time in all rural locations. Each ambulance trust is required to plan to provide appropriate resources to meet local demand. How a trust organises itself operationally to take into account its particular geography and any related challenges is its responsibility.
	NHS England has, however, done an assessment on the resources available for ambulance trusts which serve rural areas. This assessment shows ambulance services use advanced technology to accurately predict where demand is most likely to come from, given past call history. They then station vehicles accordingly. Ambulance trusts also include the incorporation of first responder and co-responder schemes based out in the community to ensure skilled help reaches patients as quickly as possible. Longer term, local ambulance trusts are working closely with their local health economies to find innovative ways of managing demand, including more use of telephone triage and appropriate referral to suitable local health providers where that is clinically appropriate.
	Ambulance trusts constantly review their operational deployment regimes to attempt to maximise response times to rural areas. NHS England expects ambulance trusts to deal with all emergency calls on the appropriate basis, no matter whether they are from a rural or urban locality.
	As commissioners of ambulance services, clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) supported by area teams must work with ambulance trusts directly to address any concerns they may have about performance standards generally and delivery of services to patients. The Department expects CCGs to ensure that the appropriate services are provided to their populations, in both urban and rural areas.
	NHS England is currently undertaking a review of urgent and emergency care, which is considering the way the system delivers services, including ambulance services. As part of the review, NHS England is working closely with the Association of Ambulance Chief Executives to see what can be done to improve ambulance performance, including performance in rural areas.
	NHS England is focusing on whole system change to the delivery of urgent and emergency care, including new models of care for ambulance services; as a result the clinical and performance standards which underpin this new offer from the ambulance service may be very different to those of the present. Therefore, it does not make sense to make piecemeal changes to the current performance standards before we know the outcome of NHS England's review.

Ambulance Services

Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the response outcomes were for each ambulance trust for category B calls in each of the 10 years for which records are available up to 2011.

Jane Ellison: The information is shown in the following table, but is not directly comparable between years.
	
		
			 Percentage of category B calls1,2 responded to within 19 minutes by ambulance trust, 2004-05 to 2010-11 
			 Ambulance Trust3 2004-054 (October to March) 2005-06 2006-075,6 2007-08 2008-097 2009-10 2010-118,9 
			 England 87.8 87.3 90.5 91.5 91.0 91.0 91.2 
			 North West Ambulance Service NHS Trust 85.6 85.6 91.2 91.0 87.6 85.9 87.0 
			 Yorkshire Ambulance Service NHS Trust 88.4 86.9 91.9 92.4 90.6 91.1 93.7 
			 East Midlands Ambulance Service NHS Trust 78.8 83.4 91.0 94.2 95.0 94.5 88.3 
			 West Midlands Ambulance Service NHS Trust 93.1 91.6 95.6 96.0 95.4 94.1 95.0 
			 East of England Ambulance Service NHS Trust 93.5 95.1 94.2 92.7 93.3 94.0 93.1 
			 London Ambulance Service NHS Trust 81.2 75.2 81.2 84.4 84.5 86.4 87.2 
		
	
	
		
			 South East Coast Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust 94.0 94.3 93.8 95.2 94.6 93.4 94.3 
			 South Central Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust 92.0 92.0 91.4 91.0 88.0 88.3 91.4 
			 Great Western Ambulance Service NHS Trust 80.4 81.8 83.0 85.7 87.4 90.8 91.7 
			 South Western Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust 90.7 89.9 93.4 93.7 94.2 95.8 95.6 
			 Isle of Wight NHS Trust 97.2 98.3 97.9 98.3 96.2 96.7 97.8 
			 1 From 2007-08 urgent calls are included (previous years relate to emergency calls only). 2 Category B; presenting conditions which, though serious, are not immediately life threatening and must receive a response within 19 minutes in 95% of cases. 3 Prior to 2006-07 there were 31 ambulance services: these have been mapped to match the later years for comparability purposes. On 1 October 2007 Staffordshire Ambulance Service NHS Trust merged with West Midlands Ambulance Service NHS Trust. For comparability, data for these two trusts have been merged for all previous years. 4 Up to October 2004 category B was merged with category C, and we are unable to separate the categories prior to this point. 5 For 2006-07 the 14/19 minute response times were dropped with the urban/rural split and replaced with 19 minutes for all trusts. 6 From 2006-07 the number of calls, where following the arrival of a response no ambulance was required, were excluded from the calculation of the response rate within 19 minutes. Data will therefore not be directly comparable with previous years. 7 From 2008-09 the starting point for response time measurement was changed, data relating to 19 minute responses from 2008-09 are not comparable with previous years. 8 Due to changes in the category B 19 minute definitions for 2010-11 these data are not fully comparable with previous years. 9 Category B ceased at the end of 2010-11 and is no longer available. Source: Health and Social Care Information Centre

Cancer

Jim Dobbin: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what progress he has made in implementing (a) the National Cancer Survivorship Initiative recommendations and (b) the National Cancer Survivorship Initiative recommendation that services to treat complex problems arising from cancer treatment be commissioned on a national basis; and what assessment he has made of complex problems arising from bone marrow transplant in the context of such treatments.

Jane Ellison: NHS England is supporting a two-year programme of work in collaboration with Macmillan Cancer Support to develop and implement evidence- based findings from the National Cancer Survivorship Initiative. There are four agreed priorities:
	implementation of the four components of the Recovery Package;
	promoting the benefits of physical activity as part of treatment and follow-up care;
	implementation of risk stratified pathways supported by evidence- based surveillance; and
	improved knowledge and management of consequences of treatment.
	Improvement in knowledge of the late effects of cancer treatment, including haematological cancers, to inform commissioning of services is one of four priority work areas for the next two years. There are already examples of services being commissioned directly by NHS England to meet complex and rare late effects of cancer treatment. If the emerging evidence indicates the need for additional services which fulfil the criteria for NHS England prescribed services, then this would be the advice provided by the National Cancer Survivorship Initiative to the NHS England Board.

Colorectal Cancer

John Baron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people were eligible for and participated in the bowel cancer screening programme in (a) England, (b) each of the five regional programme hubs and (c) each of the 59 regional screening centres in (i) 2009-10, (ii) 2010-11, (iii) 2011-12, and (iv) 2012-13.

Jane Ellison: The requested information has been provided in the following table.
	
		
			 Number of people who were eligible and participated in the bowel cancer screening programme in England by regional programme hubs and screening centres 
			 Number of people who were eligible and who participated in the bowel cancer screening programme—England 
			  2009-10 2010-11 
			 England Invited1 Adequately screened2 Uptake (%) Invited Adequately screened Uptake (%) 
			 Total 2,642,091 1,445,596 54.71 3,460,901 1,976,445 57.11 
		
	
	
		
			 Number of people who were eligible and who participated in the bowel cancer screening programme—England 
			  2011-12 2012-13 
			 England Invited Adequately screened Uptake (%) Invited Adequately screened Uptake (%) 
			 Total 3,623,950 1,996,623 55.10 3,839,325 2,245,471 58.49 
		
	
	
		
			 Number of people who were eligible and who participated in the bowel cancer screening programme—Programme Hub 
			  2009-10 2010-11 
			 Hub Invited Adequately screened Uptake (%) Invited Adequately screened Uptake (%) 
			 Eastern 578,535 329,403 56.94 696,296 418,378 60.09 
			 London 284,975 125,565 44.06 371,715 167,613 45.09 
			 Midlands and North West 636,800 341,418 53.61 846,664 472,703 55.83 
			 North East 426,920 243,605 57.06 588,772 345,346 58.66 
			 Southern 714,861 405,605 56.74 957,454 572,405 59.78 
			 Total 2,642,091 1,445,596 54.71 3,460,901 1,976,445 57.11 
		
	
	
		
			 Number of people who were eligible and who participated in the bowel cancer screening programme—Programme Hub 
			  2011-12 2012-13 
			 Hub Invited Adequately screened Uptake (%) Invited Adequately screened Uptake (%) 
			 Eastern 692,416 400,322 57.82 767,696 466,903 60.82 
			 London 405,566 183,249 45.18 404,338 194,613 48.13 
			 Midlands and North West 945,292 506,000 53.53 956,914 543,938 56.84 
			 North East 572,604 323,811 56.55 629,048 375,662 59.72 
			 Southern 1,008,072 583,241 57.86 1,081,329 664,355 61.44 
			 Total 3,623,950 1,996,623 55.10 3,839,325 2,245,471 58.49 
		
	
	
		
			 Number of people who were eligible and who participated in the bowel cancer screening programme—Screening Centre 
			  2009-10 2010-11 
			 Centre Invited Adequately screened Uptake(%) Invited Adequately screened Uptake(%) 
			 Bath, Swindon and Wiltshire 43,935 25,225 57.41 49,875 28,957 58.06 
			 Bedfordshire 43,114 22,770 52.81 32,042 18,329 57.20 
			 Berkshire 45,602 23,039 50.52 58,104 33,240 57.21 
			 Bolton 33,504 16,423 49.02 50,710 27,834 54.89 
			 Bradford and Airedale 26,325 15,113 57.41 40,180 22,039 54.85 
			 Bristol and Weston 53,141 28,089 52.86 46,708 26,774 57.32 
			 Buckinghamshire and Milton Keynes 22,135 11,929 53.89 43,111 24,354 56.49 
			 Calderdale, Kirklees and Wakefield 57,504 31,093 54.07 58,238 32,538 55.87 
			 Cambridge 35,242 20,847 59.15 54,798 34,248 62.50 
			 Cheshire 40,063 23,943 59.76 46,036 27,421 59.56 
			 Cornwall 22,028 12,532 56.89 43,989 25,937 58.96 
			 County Durham and Darlington 28,720 18,040 62.81 45,137 26,956 59.72 
			 Coventry and Warwickshire 40,873 26,052 63.74 67,309 42,197 62.69 
			 Cumbria and Morecombe 45,530 26,781 58.82 48,609 31,554 64.91 
			 Derbyshire 60,039 35,701 59.46 79,970 47,281 59.12 
			 Dorset 51,710 30,757 59.48 69,849 46,339 66.34 
			 East and North Hertfordshire 31,754 18,093 56.98 31,560 19,115 60.57 
			 East Kent 52,437 28,903 55.12 43,538 24,554 56.40 
			 Gloucestershire 34,162 21,301 62.35 49,866 30,580 61.32 
			 Hampshire 50,942 29,349 57.61 61,712 39,860 64.59 
			 Harrogate 53,091 27,845 52.45 73,168 41,206 56.32 
			 Heart of England 37,091 21,192 57.14 50,641 28,137 55.56 
		
	
	
		
			 Herefordshire and Worcestershire 32,907 19,073 57.96 54,413 32,490 59.71 
			 Hull and East Yorkshire 76,889 46,370 60.31 87,587 53,738 61.35 
			 Kettering and Northamptonshire 97,985 53,466 54.57 100,217 58,643 58.52 
			 Lancashire 82,534 43,869 53.15 96,171 54,932 57.12 
			 Lincolnshire 12,814 7,559 58.99 53,135 32,041 60.30 
			 Merseyside and North Cheshire 87,704 44,280 50.49 133,863 68,333 51.05 
			 NE London 52,176 22,234 42.61 68,539 30,265 44.16 
			 North and East Devon 35,567 20,727 58.28 42,140 25,351 60.16 
			 North Essex 60,800 35,011 57.58 79,933 48,721 60.95 
			 North of Tyne 41,656 23,478 56.36 66,105 40,509 61.28 
			 North Staffordshire 48,874 26,135 53.47 44,133 25,711 58.26 
			 Norwich 70,387 44,597 63.36 92,630 59,033 63.73 
			 Nottinghamshire 52,152 28,741 55.11 51,949 31,721 61.06 
			 Oxfordshire 4,983 2,669 53.56 40,134 22,209 55.34 
			 Pennine 41,379 19,660 47.51 30,645 16,798 54.81 
			 Peterborough and Hinchingbrooke 25,544 14,314 56.04 34,050 19,757 58.02 
			 Sandwell and West Birmingham 47,797 20,750 43.41 48,774 23,035 47.23 
			 Shropshire 18,201 10,474 57.55 31,705 18,492 58.33 
			 Solent and West Sussex 39,940 24,887 62.31 65,131 39,333 60.39 
			 Somerset 35,069 20,463 58.35 44,629 29,324 65.71 
			 South Devon 46,802 29,065 62.10 55,732 34,635 62.15 
			 South East London 59,434 25,028 42.11 63,085 29,943 47.46 
			 South Essex 43,712 23,148 52.96 57,046 32,672 57.27 
			 South of Tyne 37,128 21,175 57.03 49,858 27,629 55.42 
			 South Yorkshire and Bassetlaw 69,071 39,167 56.71 113,509 69,782 61.48 
			 St George's, London 54,759 26,788 48.92 70,723 33,961 48.02 
			 St Marks, London 48,364 22,176 45.85 58,246 26,442 45.40 
			 Surrey 89,702 48,917 54.53 89,750 54,273 60.47 
			 Sussex 44,990 25,080 55.75 76,554 44,413 58.02 
			 Tees 47,141 27,818 59.01 61,822 35,177 56.90 
			 University College London 43,329 19,963 46.07 55,110 25,320 45.94 
			 West Herts 29,045 15,957 54.94 27,383 15,740 57.48 
			 West Kent and Medway 41,712 22,692 54.40 75,238 41,793 55.55 
			 West London 35,637 13,937 39.11 59,580 23,549 39.53 
			 Withington 18,411 8,700 47.25 60,872 29,861 49.06 
			 Wolverhampton 58,554 32,211 55.01 72,653 40,257 55.41 
			 Unknown screening centre3 - - - 2,707 1,112 41.08 
			        
			 Total 2,642,091 1,445,596 54.71 3,460,901 1,976,445 57.11 
		
	
	
		
			 Number of people who were eligible and who participated in the bowel cancer screening programme—Screening Centre 
			  2011-12 2012-13 
			 Centre Invited Adequately screened Uptake (%) Invited Adequately screened Uptake (%) 
			 Bath, Swindon and Wiltshire 52,485 31,037 59.13 58,120 35,215 60.59 
			 Bedfordshire 29,985 15,844 52.84 40,692 23,359 57.40 
			 Berkshire 65,548 33,836 51.62 69,469 40,550 58.37 
			 Bolton 57,381 28,195 49.14 61,898 34,550 55.82 
			 Bradford and Airedale 38,166 20,392 53.43 42,606 24,099 56.56 
			 Bristol and Weston 44,355 23,542 53.08 61,933 36,630 59.14 
		
	
	
		
			 Buckinghamshire and Milton Keynes 43,425 24,672 56.82 39,643 23,135 58.36 
			 Calderdale, Kirklees and Wakefield 62,166 35,232 56.67 74,502 42,549 57.11 
			 Cambridge 62,917 36,870 58.60 69,753 42,965 61.60 
			 Cheshire 49,722 28,859 58.04 48,334 29,499 61.03 
			 Cornwall 44,043 26,172 59.42 39,792 24,251 60.94 
			 County Durham and Darlington 41,375 24,508 59.23 45,514 27,836 61.16 
			 Coventry and Warwickshire 68,543 41,124 60.00 69,536 43,692 62.83 
			 Cumbria and Morecombe 62,017 36,875 59.46 57,349 36,901 64.34 
			 Derbyshire 91,530 53,743 58.72 99,373 60,292 60.67 
			 Dorset 77,809 46,501 59.76 81,985 54,367 66.31 
			 East and North Hertfordshire 45,455 25,388 55.85 39,909 24,740 61.99 
			 East Kent 38,383 21,934 57.15 45,823 27,009 58.94 
			 Gloucestershire 48,959 30,106 61.49 55,292 35,314 63.87 
			 Hampshire 75,359 44,023 58.42 76,221 49,053 64.36 
			 Harrogate 60,291 34,524 57.26 67,832 39,734 58.58 
			 Heart of England 48,870 26,697 54.63 64,075 36,248 56.57 
			 Herefordshire and Worcestershire 62,632 37,544 59.94 71,065 43,248 60.86 
			 Hull and East Yorkshire 95,878 56,724 59.16 95,792 59,303 61.91 
			 Kettering and Northamptonshire 78,474 43,402 55.31 124,391 74,720 60.07 
			 Lancashire 117,229 62,737 53.52 111,042 64,294 57.90 
			 Lincolnshire 47,876 28,778 60.11 33,967 20,687 60.90 
			 Merseyside and North Cheshire 136,052 68,233 50.15 136,739 71,998 52.65 
			 NE London 71,822 30,679 42.72 65,560 29,759 45.39 
			 North and East Devon 38,180 23,321 61.08 38,169 23,718 62.14 
			 North Essex 60,975 36,291 59.52 82,279 50,468 61.34 
			 North of Tyne 63,704 35,469 55.68 67,722 41,478 61.25 
			 North Staffordshire 52,068 28,883 55.47 48,282 29,058 60.18 
			 Norwich 92,431 58,603 63.40 95,526 60,393 63.22 
			 Nottinghamshire 50,025 28,675 57.32 55,265 34,409 62.26 
			 Oxfordshire 32,329 18,295 56.59 30,954 17,872 57.74 
			 Pennine 57,044 27,745 48.64 35,854 19,216 53.60 
			 Peterborough and Hinchingbrooke 32,803 19,194 58.51 27,070 15,789 58.33 
			 Sandwell and West Birmingham 62,281 26,925 43.23 63,568 30,366 47.77 
			 Shropshire 33,926 20,176 59.47 32,267 19,463 60.32 
			 Solent and West Sussex 78,381 47,340 60.40 84,676 52,723 62.26 
			 Somerset 51,671 30,145 58.34 51,101 33,168 64.91 
			 South Devon 55,989 34,380 61.40 57,143 35,954 62.92 
			 South East London 73,760 33,088 44.86 69,653 34,747 49.89 
			 South Essex 51,460 26,883 52.24 60,614 35,280 58.20 
			 South of Tyne 49,932 28,239 56.55 57,025 32,587 57.15 
			 South Yorkshire and Bassetlaw 115,653 63,068 54.53 115,165 71,078 61.72 
			 St George's, London 83,180 40,958 49.24 86,436 44,694 51.71 
			 St Marks, London 57,299 27,515 48.02 56,899 27,840 48.93 
			 Surrey 115,466 64,327 55.71 119,185 73,620 61.77 
			 Sussex 76,885 44,315 57.64 80,822 48,517 60.03 
			 Tees 61,855 35,652 57.64 70,494 41,674 59.12 
			 University College London 60,107 27,546 45.83 62,359 30,636 49.13 
			 West Herts 39,556 20,966 53.00 44,227" 26,674 60.31 
			 West Kent and Medway 68,480 39,136 57.15 90,837 53,144 58.50 
			 West London 59,356 23,402 39.43 63,229 26,862 42.48 
			 Withington 60,520 30,604 50.57 67,825 34,363 50.66 
		
	
	
		
			 Wolverhampton 68,833 36,843 53.53 75,551 43,185 57.16 
			 Unknown screening centre3 1,054 468 44.40 921 498 54.07 
			        
			 Total 3,623,950 1,996,623 55.10 3,839,325 2,245,471 58.49 
			 1 Routinely invited: Those that are invited to participate in Faecal Occult Blood test (FOBt) screening, as opposed to those that self-refer into the programme. 2 Adequately screened: reaching a definitive FOBt outcome of either ‘Normal' or ‘Abnormal' from potentially multiple FOBt test kits. 3 Patients with a negative FOBt result who have changed their address or GP during the screening process and therefore were never assigned a local screening centre. Source: NHS Cancer Screening Programmes

Food: EU Action

Barry Gardiner: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether the Food Standards Agency has carried out any research on the European Commission's published proposals to change EU Regulation 882/2004 governing official controls in the food and agriculture industries.

Jane Ellison: On 9 October 2013 the Food Standards Agency published a draft impact assessment on the proposals to change EU Regulation 882/2004 as part of a formal 12-week consultation. The impact assessment was produced in collaboration with the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and other Government Departments following a programme of events and meetings with stakeholders throughout the United Kingdom agri-food chain to understand the potential implications of the proposals for consumers, the enforcement community and industry.
	The impact assessment is being updated as a result of additional data and evidence generated by the consultation and will be kept updated as the proposals develop during negotiations.

General Practitioners

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what powers clinical commissioning groups have to reduce missed GP appointments; and if he will make a statement.

Jane Ellison: General practitioners are independent contractors who work under contracts for NHS England to provide NHS services. It is the responsibility of individual practices to minimise missed appointments. Additionally, the NHS constitution emphasises patients’ responsibilities, stating that patients
	“should keep appointments or cancel within reasonable time”.

General Practitioners

John Leech: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the potential effect of proposed changes in the Immigration Bill on the role of GPs and on the level of public trust in GPs; and if he will make a statement.

Jane Ellison: There are no proposals in the Immigration Bill to change the role of any national health service staff including general practitioners. The Immigration Bill health clauses set out the Government's intention to introduce a health surcharge as part of the visa process for those coming here for an extended period. Those that pay the surcharge will be able to access the NHS in a similar way to British residents.

Health: Screening

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has to ensure that local authorities in England pursue a continuous improvement in the proportion of the eligible population offered and taking up NHS health checks.

Jane Ellison: Public Health England (PHE) is committed to helping local government improve the uptake and impact of the programme. In the last 12 months PHE has supported local delivery and continuous improvement in offers and uptake by progressing action against the recommendations set out in the National Health Service Health Check Implementation Review and Action Plan.
	This activity has included sharing knowledge and resources through the programme's national website and networks; delivering a national conference attended by over 400 delegates; and supporting local government to transition the findings from our behavioural insight work into practice. PHE has recently introduced a national quality improvement framework, which will support local areas to focus on improving uptake and outcomes.
	In the coming year PHE will support local activity to improve offers, uptake and the quality and consistency of delivery through the development of a sector-led improvement programme. The launch of new branding and a marketing toolkit that enables local leads to tailor information to their local population will further contribute to improving uptake. PHE is also partnering NHS Choices to develop a new public-facing web presence for the programme to help improve the public's awareness of and engagement with the programme.

Hospitals: Industrial Health and Safety

Jesse Norman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent discussions he has had with the Health and Safety Executive on health and safety in NHS hospitals.

Daniel Poulter: The Department works closely with the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) to ensure that NHS services are made available to patients, visitors and staff in a safe environment. The Department has been working with the HSE and the Care Quality Commission to ensure that the actions of the two regulators are co-ordinated in holding providers of health and adult social care to account for failings to deliver acceptable care, in line with the Government's commitments set out in the response to the Francis Inquiry “Hard Truths: The journey to putting patients first”.

Infant Mortality

Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what outcomes he expects to be achieved over the next 12 months as a result of steps taken to reduce the level of stillbirth and infant mortality rates.

Daniel Poulter: We have made reducing infant mortality an area of improvement for the national health service in the NHS Outcomes Framework. Reducing infant mortality is also highlighted as an outcome indicator in the Public Health Outcomes Framework.
	The Department is currently working in partnership with Sands (the Stillbirth and Neonatal Death charity) and a range of key organisations, including NHS England, Public Health England, the Royal College of Midwives and the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, to take forward a stillbirth prevention work programme.
	The latest data from the Office of National Statistics show that:
	In 2012 the stillbirth rate fell to 4.8 stillbirths per 1,000 live and stillbirths. This compares to a rate of 5.2 in 2011 and is the lowest rate recorded in England since the definition of stillbirth changed in 1993.
	Infant mortality rates have decreased over time in England, with 5.2 deaths per 1,000 live births in 2002 compared with 4.0 deaths per 1,000 live births in 2012. There has been a decline in infant mortality rate in England compared to the previous year (4.2 deaths per 1,000 live births, 2011).

Livestock: Diseases

Huw Irranca-Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many instances of parasitic lung worms have been identified at official post mortem inspection and prevented from entering the food chain by officials working for and on behalf of the Food Standards Agency since 1 April 2012.

Jane Ellison: The following table states how many instances of parasitic lung worms have been identified during official post mortem inspection and prevented from entering the food chain by officials working for and on behalf of the Food Standards Agency since April 2012.
	
		
			 Rejection Type Total number of conditions 
			 Parasitic Lung worms 14,878 
		
	
	The figure provided is for cattle only. Parasitic lung worm is not recorded under an individual category in other species.

Livestock: Diseases

Huw Irranca-Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many instances of the cystic stage (C Bovis) of the human tapeworm Taenia Saginata have been identified at official post mortem inspection and prevented from entering the food chain by officials working for and on behalf of the Food Standards Agency since 1 April 2012. [Official Report, 14 May 2014, Vol. 580, c. 5MC.]

Jane Ellison: The following table states how many instances of the cystic stage (C Bovis) of the human tapeworm Taenia Saginata have been identified during official post mortem inspection and prevented from entering the food chain by officials working for and on behalf of the Food Standards Agency since April 2012.
	
		
			 Rejection Type Total number of conditions 
			 Cattle Cysticercus bovis—Localised 3,246 
			 Cattle Cysticercus bovis—Generalised 2,926 
			 Note: Localised included carcase parts and offal and Generalised included total carcase.

Livestock: Diseases

Huw Irranca-Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many instances of (a) Cysticercus Tenuicollis (adult tapeworm - Taenia Hydatigena), (b) Cysticercus Ovis (adult tapeworm - Taenia Ovis), (c) Hydatid Cysts (adult tapeworm - Echinococcus Granulosus), (d) Generalised (cysts identified in multiple parts of the animal including the musculature the consumer would define as meat) and (e) Cysticercus Ovis have been identified at official post-mortem inspections and prevented from entering the food chain by officials working for and on behalf of the Food Standards Agency since 1 April 2012. [Official Report, 14 May 2014, Vol. 580, c. 6MC.]

Jane Ellison: The following number of instances have been identified at official post mortem inspection and prevented from entering the food chain by officials working for and on behalf of the Food Standards Agency (FSA) since April 2012:
	Some conditions are not recorded by the FSA. The list of conditions for cattle, sheep, goats, pigs and poultry were created following expert working group workshops for each species over the last five years. Members of the workshops included stakeholders from the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, Animal Health, EBLEX, BPEX, private veterinarians, industry vets, FSA and the Association of Meat Inspectors.
	The data for sheep, goats, deer and horses are from April 2012 to December 2013 and for all other species from April 2012 to March 2014.
	
		
			 Condition Total number identified 
			 (a) Cysticercus Tenuicollis (adult tapeworm—Taenia Hydatiqena 2,144,395 
			 (b) Cysticercus Ovis (adult tapeworm—Taenia Ovis) 190,489 
			 (c) Hydatid Cysts (adult tapeworm—Echinococcus Granulosus) 69,685 
			 (d) Generalised (cysts identified in multiple parts of the animal including the musculature the consumer would define as meat)1 6,172 
			 (e) Generalised Cysticercus Ovis 2— 
			 1 Generalised—The figure provided the number of instances of the cystic stage (C Bovis) of the human tapeworm Taenia Saginata. 2 Generalised Cysticercus Ovis—there are no generalised data held for this. The individual number of incidences are reported.

Livestock: Diseases

Barry Gardiner: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many instances of (a) pneumonia, (b) septic pneumonia, (c) Pericarditis, (d) Septic Pericarditis, (e) Peritonitis, (f) septic peritonitis, (g) Oedema, (h) Emaciation, (i) Bruising or trauma, (j) Abscesses in offal, (k) Abscesses in carcases, (l) Pyaemia, (m) animals with septicaemia, (n) Animals with tumours, (o) Hydronephrosis, (p) Nephritis and septic nephritis, (q) Lymphadenitis, (r) Tuberculosis, (s) Erysipelas in pigs, (t) Steatosis, (u) Actinobacillous and (v) Actinomycosus in red meat animals have been identified at official post mortem inspection and prevented from entering the food chain by officials working for an on behalf of the FSA since 1 April 2012. [Official Report, 9 April 2014, Vol. 579, c. 4MC.]

Jane Ellison: The following number of conditions have been identified in red meat animals at official post mortem inspection and prevented from entering the food chain by officials working for and on behalf of the Food Standards Agency (FSA) since April 2012:
	Some conditions are not recorded by the FSA. The list of conditions for cattle, sheep, goats, pigs and poultry were created following expert working group workshops for each species over the last five years. Members of the workshops included stakeholders from the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, Animal Health, EBLEX, BPEX, private veterinarians, industry vets, FSA and the Association of Meat Inspectors.
	The data for sheep, goats, deer and horses are from April 2012 to December 2013, for all other species from April 2012 to March 2014.
	
		
			 Condition Total number identified 
			 (a) Pneumonia 2,799,461 
			 (b) Septic pneumonia 1,281 
			 (c) Pericarditis 594,408 
			 (d) Septic Pericarditis No data held 
			 (e) Peritonitis 466,518 
			 (f) Septic peritonitis 6,339 
			 (q) Oedema As below 
			 (h) Emaciation/Generalised Oedema 24,288 
			 (i) Bruising or trauma 197,187 
			 (j) Abscesses in offal 294,580 
			 (k) Abscesses in carcases 199,435 
			 (j) and (k) Abscesses 451,461 
			 (l) Pyaemia 33,414 
			 (m) Animals with septicaemia 6,069 
			 (n) Animals with tumours 1,490 
			 (o) Hydronephrosis 64,819 
			 (p) Nephritis and septic nephritis No data held 
			 (q) Lymphadenitis No data held 
			 (r) Tuberculosis 27,901 
			 (s) Erysipelas in pigs 9,908 
			 (t) Steatosis No data held 
			 (u) Actinobacillous No data held 
			 (v) Actinomycosus No data held 
			 Note: (j) and (k) Abscesses relates to sheep, goats, deer and horses. This has been recoded separately as the data are not recorded by either offal or carcase.

Livestock: Diseases

Barry Gardiner: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many instances of (a) faecal contamination, (b) cellulitis, (c) dermatitis, (d) ascites, (e) salpingitiss, (f) egg impaction, (g) peritonis, (h) pericarditis, (i) pericarditis, (j) foot infections or problems, (k) arthritis and joint problems, (l) septicaemia and fever, (m) tumours, (n) air sacculitis, (o) Marek's disease, (p) white muscular disease and (q) Aspergillosis have been identified at post mortem inspection of poultry and prevented from entering the food chain 1 April 2012.

Jane Ellison: The following number of conditions have been identified in poultry at official post mortem inspection and prevented from entering the food chain by officials working for and on behalf of the Food Standards Agency (FSA) since April 2012:
	Some conditions are not recorded by the FSA. The list of conditions for cattle, sheep, goats, pigs and poultry were created following expert working group workshops for each species over the last five years. Members of the workshops included stakeholders from the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, Animal Health, EBLEX, BPEX, private veterinarians, industry vets, FSA and the Association of Meat Inspectors.
	
		
			 Condition Total number identified 
			 (a) contamination 2,853,768 
			 (b) cellulitis. 2,851,377 
			 (c) dermatitis 442,476 
			 (d) ascites 5,556,259 
			 (e) salpingitiss 205,517 
			 (f) egg impaction 1— 
			 (g) peritonitis 1,709,401 
			 (h) pericarditis 863,985 
			 (i) pericarditis 2— 
			 (j) foot infections or problems 1— 
			 (k) arthritis and joint problems 533,504 
			 (1) septicaemia and fever 3,981,157 
			 (m) tumours 380,892 
			 (n) air sacculitis 238,408 
			 (o) Marek's disease 1— 
			 (p) white muscular disease 1— 
			 (q) Aspergillosis 1— 
			 1 Data not held. 2 As for (h). Note: (a) Faecal contamination is not recoded by the FSA. The figure for all contamination has been provided. A figure for (g) peritonitis has been provided not (g) peritonise as described in the question.

Livestock: Diseases

Huw Irranca-Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many times lesions on livers caused by the intermediate stage of the parasitic roundworm ascaris suum identified in pigs at official post mortem inspection have been prevented from entering the food chain by officials working for or on behalf of the Food Standards Agency since 1 April 2012.

Jane Ellison: The following table states how many times lesions on livers caused by the intermediate stage of the parasitic roundworm ascaris suum have been identified during official post mortem inspection and prevented from entering the food chain by officials working for and on behalf of the Food Standards Agency since April 2012:
	
		
			 Rejection type Total number of conditions 
			 Milk Spots 569,250

Livestock: Diseases

Huw Irranca-Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many times the liver fluke fasciola hepatica identified at official post mortem inspection has been prevented from entering the food chain by officials working for and on behalf of the Food Standards Agency performing thorough meat inspection since 1 April 2012.

Jane Ellison: The following table states how many times the liver fluke fasciola hepatica have been identified during official post mortem inspection and prevented from entering the food chain by officials working for and on behalf of the Food Standards Agency (FSA) since April 2012:
	
		
			 Rejection type Total number of conditions Percentage of throughput 
			 Liver fluke fasciola April 2010—March 2012 2,771,130 8.6 
			 Liver fluke fasciola April 2012—March 2014 3,030,406 9.4 
		
	
	The data for sheep, goats, deer and horses are from April 2012 to December 2013 and for all other species from April 2012 to March 2014.
	Liver fluke is a common parasitic disease of both cattle and sheep in the United Kingdom, caused by the parasite Fasciola hepatica, and is estimated to cost the cattle industry £23 million annually (source: National Animal Disease Information Service). In cattle, infection is more commonly encountered in beef cows grazing poor wet pasture but disease can be seen in dairy cattle especially after summering cattle, most likely bulling heifers, away from home on infested pastures.
	Where this condition is seen in liver from cattle or sheep presented for slaughter, results are fed back to the farmers as part of the FSA's collection and communication of inspection results, allowing farmers to organise treatment of their herds against liver fluke, and improve future yield. The figure for April 2010 to April 2012 has been included for reference.

Maternity Services: Immigrants

John Leech: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether it is his policy that pregnant women resident in the UK will continue to have free access to NHS maternity services regardless of their immigration status.

Jane Ellison: Currently, only women who are resident in the United Kingdom on a lawful and properly settled basis for the time being, or otherwise exempt from charges under regulations such as asylum seekers and refugees, are entitled to have free access to national health service maternity services. Women resident here without permission who are not exempt from charge are chargeable for maternity services. However, guidance to the NHS is clear that no woman should be refused maternity care on the basis of whether she has paid in advance or not. The NHS will seek to recover charges after the services have been provided where possible.
	Under proposals in the current Immigration Bill, non-European economic area nationals subject to immigration control who are applying to reside in the UK for more than six months would be required to pay a health surcharge as a contribution to the costs of their health care and would not be granted entry if they did not do so, unless exempt from this requirement. They would then be able to access the NHS on the same basis as an ordinary resident, including free access to maternity services.
	The Government responded on 30 December 2013 to the consultation “Sustaining services, ensuring fairness: a consultation on migrant access and financial contribution to NHS provision in England”, and confirmed that those not subject to the surcharge, i.e. short-term visitors coming to the UK for less than six months and those here illegally, will continue to be charged for maternity services unless an exemption from charge category applies.

Medical Equipment

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what stoma care products were prescribed in each NHS Hospital Trust and Primary Care Trust in England in each of the last five years by (a) product and (b) manufacturer.

Norman Lamb: In terms of national health service trusts, the information requested is not held centrally as such products are not provided by hospital pharmacy departments. In terms of primary care trusts, information is held but due to the volume of information requested, estimated at over three million records, and technical problems with extracting this, it could be provided only at a disproportionate cost.

Medical Equipment

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what sponsorship arrangements are in place between manufacturers of stoma care products and individual NHS trusts; and how many such arrangements were in place in each of the last five years.

Norman Lamb: The Department is aware that there are sponsorship arrangements in place between individual national health service trusts and manufacturers of stoma products, in particular to support the employment of specialist stoma nurses. The Department does not collect information on which NHS trusts have these arrangements or the details of them.

Mental Health Services

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps his Department has taken to ensure that all NHS trusts are providing the full range of mental health interventions recommended by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence.

Norman Lamb: Mental health and well-being is a priority for this Government. The Mandate to NHS England makes clear that “everyone who needs it should have timely access to evidence based services”.
	The Health and Social Care Act (2012) places a duty on NHS England to have regard to NICE Quality Standards. Clinical commissioning groups should have regard to them in planning and delivering services, as part of a general duty to secure a continuous improvement in quality.
	We are investing over £400 million to give thousands of people, in all areas of the country, access to NICE-approved psychological therapies. This will involve extending and ensuring more open access to the Improving Access to Psychological Therapies (IAPT) programmes, including for children and young people, for those out of work, and for older people. The IAPT programme is fundamental to the success of our drive to improve mental health services.

Mid Staffordshire NHS Foundation Trust

Joan Walley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whom he has appointed to undertake the NHS England Review into consultant-led obstetric maternity services at Stafford Hospital; and what timetable applies for (a) the final report and (b) decision by the Government.

Jane Ellison: The next step in ensuring sustainability for the local health economy in Staffordshire is the development of fully aligned five-year plans. NHS England, NHS Trust Development Authority and Monitor have jointly commissioned intensive support for both commissioners and providers. The planning process will conclude this summer.
	NHS England intends subsequently to commission the review of obstetric services. A lead reviewer and review panel will be appointed, both of whom will be independent of NHS England and will not have been involved in the Trust Special Administrator process. NHS England has not yet determined the timetable for the review.

Mid Staffordshire NHS Foundation Trust

Joan Walley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the written statement of 26 February 2014, Official Report, columns 21-3WS, on Mid Staffordshire NHS Foundation Trust, 
	(1)  what his assessment is of the clinical services changes which can occur ahead of the NHS England Report and Government decision;
	(2)  how long it will take for the University Hospital of North Staffordshire (UHNS) NHS Trust to complete all contractual commitments, including transfer of undertakings from Staffordshire Hospital to UHNS;
	(3)  what the latest date is for the review to report acceptance of the Trust Special Administrator recommendations consistent with achieving University Hospital of North Staffordshire NHS Trust responsibilities for appropriate Stafford Hospital services by his deadline of Autumn 2014 as specified in the statement on Mid-Staffordshire NHS Foundation Trust Special Administration of 26 February 2014.

Jane Ellison: In their final report, the Trust Special Administrators recommended that Mid-Staffordshire NHS Foundation Trust is dissolved as soon as possible. At this point, Stafford Hospital will be transferred to University Hospital of North Staffordshire NHS Trust (UHNS).
	All parties are committed to completing the dissolution and transfer as soon as possible. However, the timetable will be driven by practical considerations and has not yet been finalised.
	Once services have been transferred, it will be for UNHS, working with local commissioners, to determine how to implement changes to services. This timetable will be driven by a range of practical issues and the need to ensure continued provision of safe services for patients.

Mid Staffordshire NHS Foundation Trust

Joan Walley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what extra provision is being provided by (a) University Hospital of North Staffordshire and (b) other hospitals to enhance services at the Trust Special Administrator-run Mid Staffordshire Hospital Trust pending the outcome of the NHS England Review; and what the extra cost is of such provision;
	(2)  what assessment he has made of the (a) financial viability and (b) medical safety of the Trust Special Administrator-provided services at Stafford Hospital pending the competition of the NHS England Review; and if he will make a statement.

Daniel Poulter: The services currently provided at Mid Staffordshire NHS Foundation Trust (MSFT) are clinically safe. However, as set out in the Trust Special Administrators' draft and final reports, not all services are clinically or financially sustainable in the long term.
	We understand that University Hospital of North Staffordshire NHS Trust is providing support to services at MSFT, including to the Accident and Emergency Department and through the provision of nursing staff, subject to local discussions.
	However, the Department does not hold detailed information on the day to day operation of services at MSFT. We have therefore written to the Trust Special Administrators at MSFT, informing them of the hon. Member's query. They will reply shortly and a copy of the letter will be placed in the Library.

Mid Staffordshire NHS Foundation Trust

Joan Walley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what representations he has received in respect of the situation following his acceptance in full of the Trust Special Administrator for Mid Staffordshire Hospital Trust's recommendation and additional decisions to instigate a review of consultant-led maternity services at Stafford.

Daniel Poulter: The Secretary of State’s acceptance of the Trust Special Administrators’ proposals for Mid Staffordshire NHS Trust was an important step towards ending the long period of uncertainty experienced by the Trust.
	The Secretary of State has asked that local stakeholders work together to implement the proposed changes. This includes supporting the University Hospital of North Staffordshire NHS Trust in the transfer of Stafford Hospital, and the Royal Wolverhampton Hospitals NHS Trust with the transfer of Cannock Chase Hospital.
	We are not aware of any representations specifically regarding continuing uncertainty following the Secretary of State’s decision.

Multiple Sclerosis

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many individual funding requests for Fampridine have been made to NHS England since April 2013; and how many such requests have been approved.

Norman Lamb: NHS England has informed us that this information is not currently available. NHS England is improving its data collection mechanisms and aims for this information to be available in the future.

Multiple Sclerosis

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what calculations were used to assess the costs and benefits of using Fampridine to treat multiple sclerosis patients.

Norman Lamb: The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has not issued any guidance on the use of fampridine. NICE is currently updating its clinical guideline on the management of multiple sclerosis in primary and secondary care. The updated guideline will include recommendations on the pharmacological management of mobility with fampridine.

Multiple Sclerosis

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will estimate the annual cost to the (a) NHS and (b) economy of people with multiple sclerosis who suffer from deteriorating spasticity.

Norman Lamb: While data are available regarding annual national health service spend on neurological conditions as a whole, spending in relation to patients with multiple sclerosis suffering from deteriorating spasticity cannot be identified. Similarly, while some cost estimates of the wider impact of long-term conditions on parts of the economy are available, these data do not identify the group of patients concerned.

NHS: Pay

Charlotte Leslie: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what pay rise NHS employees on incremental schemes will receive if they are already at the top of their banding levels.

Daniel Poulter: Staff on incremental schemes who, on 31 March 2014, are on the top of their pay scale will receive a non-consolidated payment equivalent to 1% of basic salary, payable in monthly instalments with effect from 1 April 2014.

NHS: Redundancy

Stephen Hepburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many NHS staff in (a) Jarrow constituency, (b) South Tyneside, (c) Gateshead, (d) the North East and (e) the UK have been made redundant in each year since 2005.

Daniel Poulter: In the context of a national health service work force of almost 1.2 million, the numbers of NHS staff made redundant in four of the geographical areas since 2008-09 is provided in the following table.
	Information is not available for NHS staff made redundant in the Jarrow constituency as NHS organisations do not specifically cover that area.
	Information has been extracted from the NHS Electronic Staff Record (ESR). Because ESR was not fully introduced until April 2008 it is not possible to provide figures before 2008-09. ESR includes data for the NHS in England only, not the United Kingdom.
	
		
			 Number 
			  2008-09 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 12013-14 
			 South Tyneside 10 15 20 5 25 100 
			 Gateshead — 10 10 5 5 0 
			 The North East 70 60 510 320 210 130 
			 England 2,210 1,830 5,520 26,820 26,780 22,660 
			 ‘—’ Indicates figure less than 5. 1 Period to October 2013. 2 Published figure. Notes: 1. Since 2011 the Health and Social Care Information Centre (HSCIC) has published redundancy data so figures since 2011 have been taken from HSCIC published information. For the period before 2011, Electronic Staff Record (ESR) data have been used which were not published. 2. ESR is the human resources and payroll system that covers most NHS employees. The data used in this reply are not centrally validated and their reliability is subject to local coding practice. Redundancies are identified by staff records with a reason for leaving coded as either voluntary or compulsory redundancy. 3. The following organisations have been identified within the geographical areas requested as follows: South Tyneside South Tyneside Primary Care Trust and South Tyneside NHS Foundation Trust. Gateshead Includes Gateshead Primary Care Trust and Gateshead Health NHS Foundation Trust. North East Includes all organisations assigned to the North East Local Education and Training Board on ESR. Jarrow constituency It has not been possible to locate any organisations specifically covering the Jarrow constituency.

NHS: Re-employment

Stephen Hepburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many National Health Service staff in (a) Jarrow constituency, (b) South Tyneside, (c) Gateshead, (d) the North East and (e) the UK who have been made redundant since May 2010 have been re-employed by an NHS organisation on (i) a permanent basis and (ii) a fixed-term contract basis.

Daniel Poulter: In the context of a national health service work force of almost 1.2 million, the number of NHS staff made redundant since May 2010 and subsequently re-employed, up until December 2013, by NHS organisations in the geographical areas specified is estimated in the following table.
	Information is not available for NHS staff made redundant and re-employed by NHS organisations in the Jarrow constituency as NHS organisations do not specifically cover that area.
	Information has been extracted from the NHS Electronic Staff Record (ESR) which includes data for the NHS in England only, not the United Kingdom.
	
		
			 Region Permanent Fixed Term Total 
			 South Tyneside 15 10 25 
			 Gateshead — 0 — 
			 North East 170 140 310 
			 England 2,630 1,420 4,050 
		
	
	
		
			 '—' Indicates figure less than 5. Notes: 1. ESR is the Human Resources and payroll system that covers most NHS employees. 2. ESR was fully rolled out across the NHS in 2008. 3. ESR data used in this reply are not centrally validated and their reliability is subject to local coding practice. Redundancies are identified by staff records with a reason for leaving coded as either voluntary or compulsory redundancy. 4. Only those individuals with a leaving date of 1 May 2010 or later and a hire, return, date of 31 December 2013 or earlier have been included in the total. The figure includes those who are recorded as having been re-employed with a substantive, either permanent or fixed term, contract. It is not possible to identify management consultants using ESR records. 5. The following organisations which use ESR have been identified within each geographical region: South Tyneside includes: South Tyneside Primary Care Trust and South Tyneside NHS Foundation Trust. Gateshead includes: Gateshead Primary Care Trust and Gateshead Health NHS Foundation Trust. North East includes all organisations assigned to the North East Local Education and Training Board on ESR. 6. In a small number of cases, staff are recorded as being made redundant more than once. In such cases, only the latest redundancy is counted. Where staff have more than one start date subsequent to redundancy, only the earliest date is counted. Some staff initially re-employed on a fixed term contract basis who subsequently are further employed on a permanent basis will only be counted on the fixed term contract basis, and vice versa.

Parkinson's Disease

Cathy Jamieson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will commission national guidance on ensuring Parkinson's disease patients do not miss doses of their medication in hospital.

Norman Lamb: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave her on 26 March 2014, Official Report, column 272W, in which it was explained that there is a range of existing relevant guidance available, covering England. In addition, recently the Department has issued a Care Quality Commission (CQC) consultation document, ‘Introducing Fundamental Standards: Consultation on proposals to change CQC registration regulations’. Page 24 of this document states that there should be sufficient quantities of suitably accessible equipment and medicines to ensure the safety of service users and to meet their assessed needs. Page 25 refers to taking appropriate steps for the proper and safe management of medicines. Also, at annex D reference is made to people getting prescribed medicines at the right time and the right dose. A copy of the document has already been placed in the Library and is available at:
	www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/274715/Introducing_Fundamental _Standards_-_a_Consultation.pdf

Parkinson's Disease

Roger Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what initiatives are in place to train health professionals on the importance of providing people with Parkinson's disease medication on time while they are in hospital.

Daniel Poulter: Timely delivery of medication is an issue that will be considered by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence and the professional bodies as part of their work on medicines optimisation.
	In addition, there is other guidance available, such as that produced by the Royal Pharmaceutical Society, ‘Professional standards for hospital pharmacy services; optimising patient outcomes from medicines’.
	Health Education England will work with stakeholders to influence training curricula as appropriate, although the content and standard of clinical training is ultimately the responsibility of the professional bodies.

Parkinson's Disease

Roger Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps the Government are taking to ensure there is a quick and easy way for a patient with Parkinson's disease to lodge a complaint against a hospital trust should they not receive their medicine on time during their stay.

Daniel Poulter: The Government accept the findings by the right hon. Member for Cynon Valley (Ann Clwyd) and Professor Tricia Hart in “A Review of the NHS Hospitals Complaints System – Putting Patients Back in the Picture” that:
	vulnerable people find the complaints system complicated and hard to navigate; and
	there is a low level of public awareness of the NHS Complaints Advocacy Service.
	We want to see every trust make clear to every patient from their first encounter with the hospital:
	how they can complain to the hospital when things go wrong;
	who they can turn to for independent local support if they want it, and where to contact them;
	that they have the right to go to the Ombudsman if they remain dissatisfied, and how to contact them; and
	details of how to contact their local HealthWatch.
	To support this work, the Department has set up a Complaints Programme Board. This was established in December 2013 to bring together a range of partners across the care system to implement actions that will lead to improvements in complaints handling and assist member organisations (for example, the Care Quality Commission) to deal with poor care.

Public Health England

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of the (a) fixed costs and (b) annual running costs of Public Health England.

Jane Ellison: Public Health England (PHE) does not currently budget or report on the split between fixed and non-fixed costs. The following table shows the budget for last year and this year, split between day to day activity (net operating expenditure), that spent on vaccines and countermeasures, and the local authority (LA) grant, which is paid to LAs to exercise their public health duties.
	
		
			 PHE 2014-15—(cash) Grant-in-Aid 2013-14 (£ million) 2014-15 (£ million) 
			 Net operating expenditure 405.7 392.3 
			 Vaccines and counter-measures 376.5 376.5 
			 LA public health grants 2,661.8 2,793.8 
			 Total (cash) grant-in-aid 3,444.0 3,562.6

Public Health England

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many staff are employed at Public Health England.

Jane Ellison: As at 31 January 2014 Public Health England employed 5,389 staff (5060,1 whole time equivalents).

Skin Cancer

Pauline Latham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the views of the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence on the survival benefit of dacabazine as a first line treatment for advanced melanoma; and if he will make a statement.

Norman Lamb: We have made no such assessment.

ATTORNEY-GENERAL

Counterfeit Manufacturing: Money

Tom Blenkinsop: To ask the Attorney-General pursuant to the answer of 24 March 2014, Official Report, column 40W, how many offences charged under section 14(1) and 22 of the Forgery and Counterfeiting Act 1981 reached a first hearing in magistrates court in each year since 2008.

Oliver Heald: The number of offences charged under section 14(1) and 22 of the Forgery and Counterfeiting Act 1981 that reached a first hearing in magistrates courts in each year since 2008 are:
	
		
			  Make a counterfeit of a protected coin with intent Make a counterfeit of a currency note with intent Total 
			 2008 2 22 24 
			 2009 0 4 4 
			 2010 0 4 4 
			 2011 3 17 20 
			 2012 2 12 14 
			 2013 2 13 15 
			 Total 9 72 81

Female Genital Mutilation

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Attorney-General what steps he is taking to ensure that victims of female genital mutilation whose cases go to trial have access to the full range of support and special measures that are available to victims of other sexual offences.

Oliver Heald: The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) recognises that appropriate support is vital to ensure that victims of female genital mutilation (FGM) are able to give their evidence effectively in court. The CPS legal guidance advises prosecutors that in all cases of FGM they must ensure that the complainant is aware of the special measures that can be applied for at court, and that applications are made in time. For all child witnesses there is a presumption that they will give their evidence in chief by recorded interview and any further evidence by live link unless the court is satisfied that this will not improve the quality of the child's evidence. Adult victims of FGM are also eligible for special measures on the grounds that they are likely to be intimidated witnesses in relation to testifying at court. However, it is a matter for the court to grant the application.

Female Genital Mutilation

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Attorney-General if he will make it his policy to introduce the option of anonymity for victims of female genital mutilation in court trials.

Oliver Heald: The Crown Prosecution Service recognises that more needs to be done to encourage victims of female genital mutilation (FGM) to come forward. The Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) has said that the introduction of anonymity for victims of FGM should be considered to encourage more victims to come forward as, given the very personal nature of the offence, very few do so. However, any change of law on anonymity is a matter for the Ministry of Justice.

Prosecutions

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Attorney-General on how many occasions and for what offences each Crown Prosecution Service business area has recommended that an offence be taken into consideration instead of charged separately in each of the last three years and in 2013-14 to date.

Oliver Heald: The Crown Prosecution Service holds no central records of the number of occasions, and for what offence(s), it has recommended that an offence is suitable to be taken into consideration. To obtain details would require a manual exercise of reviewing individual case files to be undertaken at a disproportionate cost.

Serious Fraud Office

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Attorney-General for how many cases the Serious Fraud Office has sought additional funding from the Exchequer in the last two years; and on how many occasions such funding was granted (a) in part and (b) in full.

Oliver Heald: The Serious Fraud Office (SFO) has sought additional funding in relation to three cases in the last two years, and this was granted in full on each occasion.
	Some additional funding has also been provided in relation to other matters as set out in the recent report of the Justice Committee on the SFO's supplementary estimate for 2013-14.

Service Prosecuting Authority

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Attorney-General when the next inspection of the Service Prosecuting Authority is planned by HM Crown Prosecution Service Inspectorate.

Oliver Heald: There are currently no plans for HM Crown Prosecution Service Inspectorate to carry out an inspection of the Service Prosecuting Authority.

ENERGY AND CLIMATE CHANGE

Argentina

Henry Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what (a) direct and (b) indirect bilateral funding arrangements his Department has with governmental or non-governmental projects and bodies in Argentina.

Gregory Barker: The Department does not at present provide bilateral funding to Argentina.

Energy: Prices

Tom Blenkinsop: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change if he will urge energy providers to offer unconditional price freezes.

Michael Fallon: Pricing decisions are a matter for energy suppliers. I welcome any steps by suppliers to keep energy bills down.

Nuclear Power: Security

Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what steps the Government plan to take to deliver the commitments on nuclear security contained in paragraph 27 of the Hague Nuclear Security summit communiqué held in the Hague on 24 and 25 March 2014.

Michael Fallon: Safety and security are top priorities for the Government and there is a robust security framework in place for the civil nuclear industry. We seek continuous improvement in line with internationally established principles. The UK has a strong and effective independent regulator, the Office for Nuclear Regulation (ONR), which ensures compliance with the requirements placed on duty holders by the Nuclear Industries Security Regulations 2003 (as amended) and the performance-based National Objectives, Requirements and Model Standards (NORMS). There is extensive engagement between the Government, ONR and duty holders. The full set of UK commitments made at the Nuclear Security summit which go towards meeting paragraph 27 of the summit’s communiqué can be found at the following link:
	https://www.nss2014.com/sites/default/files/documents/140321_uk_national_statement_on_commitments.pdf

Plutonium

Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what steps the Government plan to take to deliver the commitments on nuclear security contained in paragraph 21 of the Hague Nuclear Security summit communiqué of the Nuclear Security summit held in the Hague on 24 and 25 March 2014 to keep the national stockpile of separated plutonium to the minimum level.

Michael Fallon: The Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA) has published strategies for the management of spent Magnox and oxide fuel; it is from these spent fuels that plutonium is separated. These strategies are aligned with UK Government policy and their implementation is expected to see cessation of reprocessing in Magnox and THORP facilities during this decade.
	With respect to Magnox fuel, the intent is to reprocess all of it. Only a finite amount of Magnox fuel remains, which limits the amount of further separated plutonium that could be produced from reprocessing. Reprocessing is the only approved process for managing this metal fuel.
	With respect to oxide fuel management, an NDA paper sets out the strategy which is to complete the reprocessing contracts in THORP, as far as is reasonably practicable, and place the remaining fuel and any future arisings into interim storage pending disposal. The paper can be found at:
	http://www.nda.gov.uk/documents/upload/Oxide-Fuels-Preferred-Options-June-2012.pdf
	Both these strategies see the amount of plutonium separated in the future being limited in line with national requirements.

Trade Unions

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change whether his Department is (a) undertaking or (b) plans to undertake a review of the check-off union subscription provision.

Gregory Barker: The Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, my right hon. Friend the Member for Kingston and Surbiton (Mr Davey), reviewed the situation on 23 January 2014.

SCOTLAND

All-Party Groups

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what his Department’s policy is on allowing officials to appear before all-party parliamentary groups.

David Mundell: I refer the hon. Gentleman to the answer given by the Minister for the Cabinet Office and Paymaster General, my right hon. Friend the Member for Horsham (Mr Maude), on 26 March 2014, Official Report, column 300W.

CULTURE MEDIA AND SPORT

Broadband: South West

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what targets have been set for the rollout of superfast broadband in Devon and Somerset; and whether Broadband Delivery UK has met those targets.

Edward Vaizey: The Government have allocated £54.72 million to support improvements to superfast broadband coverage in Devon and Somerset as part of their commitment to ensure 95% of the UK has access to superfast broadband by 2017. They have not set specific coverage target for individual projects. In addition, the recently published Ofcom European Broadband Scorecard shows that the UK now has the best broadband among the major economies in Europe, a year ahead of target.

NORTHERN IRELAND

All-Party Groups

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what her Department's policy is on allowing officials to appear before all-party parliamentary groups.

Theresa Villiers: I refer the hon. Gentleman to the answer given by the Minister for the Cabinet Office and Paymaster General, my right hon. Friend the Member for Horsham (Mr Maude), on 26 March 2014, Official Report, column 300W.

Working Hours

Lucy Powell: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what proportion of employees in her Department of what (a) Civil Service pay grade and (b) gender work (i) reduced hours, (ii) flexi-time, (iii) from home, (iv) a compressed working week, (v) job share, (vi) term-time only and (vii) part-time.

Theresa Villiers: The figures for staff in my Department falling under these work patterns by grade and gender are as follows:
	(i) Zero;
	(ii) Flexi-time is granted under local arrangements between line managers and their staff and the details are not held centrally;
	(iii) None of the staff in my Department work from home on a full time basis;
	(iv) Band A 9% male;
	(v) No one in my Department job shares;
	(vi) Band B (SEO) 8% female;
	(vii) Figures for part time working in my Department are given as follows:
	
		
			 Percentage 
			  Male Female 
			 Band A 9 — 
			 Band B 14 — 
			 Band C — — 
			 Band D — 8 
			 Band E — 33 
			 Band F — 22

BUSINESS, INNOVATION AND SKILLS

Barclays

Roger Godsiff: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what assessment his Department has made of the policy of Barclays on the use of tax havens.

David Gauke: I have been asked to reply 
	on behalf of the Treasury.
	I am unable to comment on the tax affairs of individual companies.

TRANSPORT

Cycleways

Stephen Barclay: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what recent estimate his Department has made of the cost per mile of building cycle lanes; and what steps he is taking to reduce this cost in rural areas.

Robert Goodwill: The Department does not estimate the cost per mile of building cycle lanes. Cycling infrastructure varies in design and cost due to the location and scheme design. The provision of cycling facilities is a matter for local authorities and as such they are best placed to determine the spend per mile for building cycle lanes. The Department does provide best practice information in cycle infrastructure design through its publication “Cycle infrastructure Design” (Local Transport Note 2/08). The Department encourages local authorities, in both urban and rural areas, to obtain best value in the provision of highways infrastructure.

Driver and Vehicle Agency

Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will take steps to ensure people who are currently employed by the Driver and Vehicle Agency receive training to enable them to take up local posts in other Government departments and public bodies..

Stephen Hammond: Department for Transport officials are working with those in Northern Ireland to support any Driver and Vehicle Agency (DVA) staff who might need to learn new skills to secure alternative employment. An initial meeting has taken place to discuss the details. Officials will continue to work together to ensure appropriate support is given to staff at the DVA during the transition period.

High Speed 2 Railway Line

Andrea Leadsom: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will update the business case for High Speed 2 to reflect the fact that there will be no link with High Speed 1.

Robert Goodwill: We will continue to revise and update the economic case for HS2 as new project milestones are reached, such as decisions on the preferred route for Phase 2, to ensure it is based on the best available evidence and latest understanding of the project, including taking account of the decision to remove the existing proposals for the HS1-HS2 link from the scheme.

Northern Rail

Mary Creagh: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the (a) net franchise payment, (b) revenue support sum and (c) net subsidy are for the 22-month direct award of the northern franchise to Northern Rail Ltd.

Stephen Hammond: For the 22-month Northern franchise direct award there is no revenue support mechanism and there is a £632.7 million contracted subsidy over the full period of the franchise.

Railway Stations

Heidi Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when he plans to announce which stations will receive (a) access for all funding and (b) national station improvement programme funding between 2014 and 2019.

Stephen Hammond: We plan to announce the stations that will receive Access for All funding in April.
	The responsibility for deciding which stations will benefit from the next phase of the National Stations Improvement Programme rests with the industry Local Delivery Groups (LDGs) and not the Department.
	The LDGs are in the process of developing their plans and will in due course be able to confirm which schemes they are progressing.

Railway Stations: Kent

Heidi Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how much has been spent by his Department on platform lengthening on the Integrated Kent Franchise routes in each year since 2000, by station.

Stephen Hammond: It is Network Rail who has funded and delivered the platform lengthening on the Integrated Kent Franchise routes. The Department has no detailed information on individual station costs.

Railways: Tickets

Mary Creagh: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what discussions his Department has had with Transport for London on the South East Flexible Ticketing scheme.

Stephen Hammond: As a key delivery partner for the South East Flexible Ticketing (SEFT) programme, Transport for London is a signatory to the SEFT Memorandum of Understanding and has membership of the SEFT Programme Board. This is intended to ensure that its extensive experience of developing smart ticketing in London is fully utilised in delivering the SEFT programme.
	TfL has therefore been fully involved in all significant discussions on the strategic direction, design and delivery of SEFT. Significant work has also been carried out with it to ensure that the scheme will interoperate properly with its existing infrastructure in central London, including system testing.

Rescue Services

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assets he has designated for search and rescue under section 2.5 of Annex 12 of the Convention on International Civil Aviation; and where each such asset is located.

Stephen Hammond: I refer the hon. Member to my answer of 2 September 2013, Official Report, column 153W.

Road Traffic

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what steps he plans to take to relieve congestion on roads.

Robert Goodwill: This Government are committed to investing in infrastructure to reduce traffic congestion. This means spending £24 billion on strategic roads over this and the next Parliament, and accelerating the pace of delivery so that people affected see a difference more quickly.
	This includes a £500 million programme of pinch point schemes specifically targeted at tackling congestion on both the strategic and local road network, and a further £800 million being invested in 25 local major road schemes.
	We have previously announced £183.5 million for road repairs following the severe weather this winter and in the recent Budget, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, my right hon. Friend the Member for Tatton (Mr Osborne), announced a further £200 million funding for pothole repairs. Of this, £168 million will assist councils in England, with the remaining £32 million allocated to the devolved Administrations.

Roads: Repairs and Maintenance

Robert Halfon: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how much money has been spent on repairing potholes in (a) Harlow and (b) Essex since 2004.

Robert Goodwill: The Department for Transport provides capital funding to local highway authorities, including Essex county council, from the local highways maintenance capital block grant. Harlow falls within Essex county council's area of responsibility and therefore we do not allocate any funds directly to the borough council for road maintenance.
	Since 2004 the Department has allocated the following amounts to Essex for highway maintenance:
	
		
			  £ million 
			 2004-05 12.626 
			 2005-06 15.782 
			 2006-07 16.682 
			 2007-08 22.428 
			 2008-09 20.706 
			 2009-10 21.361 
			 2010-11 20.959 
			 2011-12 20.728 
			 2012-13 19.838 
			 2013-14 122.482 
			 2014-15 119.873 
			 1 Includes the top-up announced in the 2012 autumn statement. 
		
	
	The Department also allocated additional funding to authorities to help repair roads damaged by various weather events and this included a further £2.116 million to Essex county council in 2010-11 and £5.301 million in March 2011. More recently the Department for Transport has agreed to allocate over £2.7 million due to the severe wet weather the country has encountered.
	A £200 million Pothole Fund was announced in the Budget on 19 March 2014. From this, £168 million is being made available to councils in England through a bidding exercise. Further details on the fund will be made available in the coming weeks.
	Local authorities are also able to use revenue funding allocated by the Department for Communities and Local Government through the Revenue Support Grant for maintaining their local highways. Neither capital nor revenue highways maintenance funding is ring-fenced and it is for local highway authorities to decide upon their spending priorities across the whole range of services they provide.
	The Department for Transport does not centrally hold information on what proportion of this funding is spent by Essex county council on repairing potholes.

Southeastern

Heidi Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport on what date he expects all peak services provided by Southeastern to be formed of 12-car trains.

Stephen Hammond: We do not expect all peak services provided by Southeastern to be formed of 12-car trains as demand on some routes does not require this level of capacity provision. It is for the train operating company running the service to best match its rolling stock with passenger demand.
	Through the Government’s Rail Investment Strategy, we are investing in additional capacity across the country, for where it is most needed.

Trade Unions

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether his Department is (a) undertaking or (b) plans to undertake a review of the check-off union subscription provision.

Stephen Hammond: The Department for Transport is undertaking a review.

Working Hours

Lucy Powell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what proportion of employees in his Department of what (a) Civil Service pay grade and (b) gender work (i) reduced hours, (ii) flexi-time, (iii) from home, (iv) a compressed working week, (v) job share, (vi) term-time only and (vii) part-time.

Stephen Hammond: The total number of employees in the Department and its agencies split by gender is as follows:
	Female—6,924
	Male—9,768
	The following tables provide the information requested. Where numbers are 5 or less, we have withheld the precise number on grounds of confidentiality in line with the Data Protection Act.
	
		
			 DFT Centre: Female 
			 Grade Total in headcount (ONS) Reduced hours1 Flexi time1 From home1 Compressed working week Job share Term-time only Part time 
			 PB1 (AA) 0 — — — 0 0 0 0 
			 PB2 (AO) 77 — — — 0 0 0 11 
			 PB3 (EO) 95 — — — 0 6 0 18 
			 PB4(HEO) 162 — — — 0 0 0 21 
			 PB5 (SEO) 80 — — — 0 0 0 14 
			 PB6 (Grade 7) 169 — — — 0 7 0 34 
			 PB7 (Grade 6) 52 — — — 0 <5 0 21 
			 SCS 40 — — — 0 <5 0 8 
		
	
	
		
			 DFT Centre: Male 
			 Grade Total in headcount (ONS) Reduced hours1 Flexi time1 From home1 Compressed working week1 Job share1 Term-time only1 Part time1 
			 PB1 (AA) <5 — — — 0 0 0 0 
			 PB2 (AO) 95 — — — 0 <5 0 18 
			 PB3 (EO) 129 — — — 0 0 0 6 
			 PB4 (HEO) 255 — — — 0 <5 0 <5 
			 PB5 (SEO) 191 — — — 0 0 0 7 
			 PB6 (Grade 7) 288 — — — 0 <5 0 16 
			 PB7 (Grade 6) 138 — — — 0 <5 0 9 
			 SCS 81 — — — 0 <5 0 <5 
		
	
	
		
			 Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency: Female 
			 Grade Total in headcount (ONS) Reduced hours Flexi time From home Compressed working week Job share Term-time only Part time 
			 PB1 (AA) 121 38 44 0 <5 0 <5 68 
			 PB2 (AO) 441 42 119 0 28 0 12 137 
			 PB3 (EO) 534 109 60 0 9 0 14 147 
			 PB4 (HEO) 144 11 51 0 13 0 <5 22 
			 PB5 (SEO) 60 7 32 0 <5 0 0 9 
			 PB6 (Grade 7) 17 <5 0 0 <5 0 0 <5 
		
	
	
		
			 PB7 (Grade 6) <5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			 SCS <5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 
		
	
	
		
			 Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency: Male 
			 Grade Total in headcount (ONS) Reduced hours Flexi time From home Compressed working week Job share Term-time only Part time 
			 PB1 (AA) 60 <5 9 0 8 0 0 10 
			 PB2 (AO) 636 <5 65 0 7 0 0 31 
			 PB3 (EO) 2,042 224 36 0 9 0 7 252 
			 PB4 (HEO) 316 <5 42 0 <5 0 0 8 
			 PB5 (SEO) 119 <5 23 0 7 0 0 <5 
			 PB6 (Grade 7) 57 <5 0 0 <5 0 0 <5 
			 PB7 (Grade 6) 15 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			 SCS <5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 
		
	
	
		
			 Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency: Female 
			 Grade Total in headcount (ONS) Reduced hours Flexi time From home Compressed working week Job share Term-time only Part time 
			 PB1 (AA) 1,075 0 1075 0 <5 0 17 566 
			 PB2 (AO) 1,599 0 1599 0 <5 0 6 633 
			 PB3 (EO) 428 0 428 0 <5 0 <5 120 
			 PB4 (HEO) 206 0 206 0 <5 0 0 41 
			 PB5 (SEO) 107 0 107 0 <5 0 0 23 
			 PB6 (G7) 37 0 0 0 <5 0 0 <5 
			 PB7 (G6) 21 0 0 0 <5 0 0 <5 
			 SCS <5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 
		
	
	
		
			 Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency: Male 
			 Grade Total in headcount (ONS) Reduced hours Flexi time From home Compressed working week Job share Term-time only Part time 
			 PB1 (AA) 624 0 624 0 <5 0 <5 102 
			 PB2 (AO) 852 0 852 0 <5 0 0 55 
			 PB3 (EO) 298 0 298 0 <5 0 0 15 
			 PB4 (HEO) 163 0 163 0 <5 0 0 9 
			 PB5 (SEO) 113 0 113 0 0 0 0 <5 
			 PB6 (G7) 46 0 0 0 0 0 0 <5 
			 PB7 (G6) 25 0 0 0 0 0 0 <5 
			 SCS <5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 
		
	
	
		
			 Highways Agency: Female 
			 Grade Total in headcount (ONS) Reduced hours1 Flexi time From home1 Compressed working week Job share1 Term-time only Part time 
			 PB1 (AA) <5 — <5 — 0 — 0 0 
			 PB2 (AO) 131 — 131 — <5 — <5 40 
			 PB3 (EO) 183 — 183 — 6 — <5 48 
			 PB4 (HEO) 142 — 142 — 6 — 0 33 
			 PB5 156 — 156 — <5 — 0 37 
			 PB6 (SEO) 142 — 142 — 5 — <5 30 
			 PB7 (Grade 7) 62 — <5 — 8 — 0- 9 
			 PB8 (Grade 6) 13 — 0 — <5 — 0 <5 
			 Traffic Officers 229 — 0 — 0 — 0 28 
			 SCS <5 — 0 — 0 — 0 0 
		
	
	
		
			 Highways Agency: Male 
			 Grade Total in headcount (ONS) Reduced hours1 Flexi time From home1 Compressed working week Job share1 Term-time only Part time 
			 PB1 (AA) 0 — 0 — 0 — 0 0 
		
	
	
		
			 PB2 (AO) 87 — 87 — 0 — 0 10 
			 PB3 (EO) 154 — 154 — <5 — 0 15 
			 PB4 (HEO) 112 — 112 — <5 — 0 7 
			 PB5 195 — 195 — <5 — 0 10 
			 PB6 (SEO) 377 — 377 — 12 — 0 31 
			 PB7 (Grade 7) 178 — 10 — 11 — 0 13 
			 PB8 (Grade 6) 54 — <5 — 0 — 0 <5 
			 Traffic Officers 1,202 — 0 — 0 — 0 65 
			 SCS 28 — 0 — 0 — 0 <5 
		
	
	
		
			 Vehicle Certification Agency: Female 
			 Grade Total in headcount (ONS) Reduced hours Flexi time From home Compressed working week Job share Term-time only Part time 
			 PB1 (AA) <5 — <5 0 0 — 0 <5 
			 PB2 (AO) 18 — 11 0 <5 — <5 9 
			 PB3 (EO) 16 — 12 <5 <5 — <5 6 
			 PB4 (HEO) <5 — 6 0 0 — 0 <5 
			 PB5 (SEO) <5 — <5 0 0 — 0 0 
			 PB6 (G7) <5 — 0 0 0 — 0 0 
			 PB7 (G6) 0 — 0 0 0 — 0 0 
			 SCS 0 — 0 0 0 — 0 0 
		
	
	
		
			 Vehicle Certification Agency: Male 
			 Grade Total in headcount (ONS) Reduced hours Flexi time From home Compressed working week Job share Term-time only Part time 
			 PB1 (AA) <5 — <5 0 0 — 0 0 
			 PB2 (AO) 17 — 15 0 0 — 0 <5 
			 PB3 (EO) 20 — 6 <5 <5 — 0 <5 
			 PB4 (HEO) 39 — <5 <5 <5 — 0 0 
			 PB5 (SEO) 32 — <5 <5 <5 — 0 <5 
			 PB6 <G7) 10 — 0 0 0 — 0 0 
			 PB7 (G6) <5 — 0 0 0 — 0 0 
			 SCS <5 — 0 0 0 — 0 0 
		
	
	
		
			 Maritime and Coastguard Agency: Female 
			 Grade Total in headcount (ONS) Reduced hours1 Flexi time1 From home1 Compressed working week1 Job share1 Term-time only1 Part time 
			 PB1 (AA) 24 — — — — — — 7 
			 PB2 (AO) 165 — — — — — — 52 
			 PB3 (EO) 74 — — — — — — 14 
			 PB4 (HEO) 42 — — — — — — 17 
			 PB5 (SEO) 25 — — — — — — <5 
			 PB6 (G7) 16 — — — — — — <5 
			 PB7 (G6) <5 — — — — — — 0 
			 SCS <5 — — — — — — 0 
		
	
	
		
			 Maritime and Coastguard Agency: Male 
			 Grade Total in headcount (ONS) Reduced hours1 Flexi time1 From home1 Compressed working week1 Job share1 Term-time only1 Part time 
			 PB1 (AA) 43 — — — — — — <5 
			 PB2 (AO) 180 — — — — — — 9 
			 PB3 (EO) 153 — — — — — — <5 
			 PB4 (HEO) 94 — — — — — — 9 
			 PB5 (SEO) 142 — — — — — — 19 
			 PB6 (G7) 76 — — — — — — 6 
			 PB7 (G6) 15 — — — — — — 0 
			 SCS <5 — — — — — — <5 
			 1 Information not held centrally.

ENVIRONMENT FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS

All-Party Groups

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what his Department’s policy is on allowing officials to appear before all-party parliamentary groups.

Dan Rogerson: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by the Minister for the Cabinet Office and Paymaster General, the right hon. Member for Horsham (Mr Maude), on 26 March 2014, Official Report, column 300W.

Birds: Falkland Islands

Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs for what reasons his Department supported an officer in the Falkland Islands responsible for implementing the Agreement on the Conservation of Albatrosses and Petrels on behalf of the Overseas Territories.

George Eustice: Joint UK and South Atlantic Overseas Territories funding has supported a co-ordinating post based in the Falkland Islands since 2008 to, among other things, help meet obligations arising from the Agreement on the Conservation of Albatrosses and Petrels (ACAP), a daughter agreement to the Convention on Migratory Species. ACAP has been extended to the UK's South Atlantic Territories. DEFRA currently contributes £20,000 per year.
	ACAP seeks to conserve albatrosses and petrels by co-ordinating international activity to mitigate known threats. Collectively, the UK's South Atlantic Overseas Territories are breeding range states for 12 of the 30 species currently listed by the Agreement. The ACAP co-ordination project was established to ensure coherence of action between the territories, assist with the planning and implementation of albatross and petrel conservation work, take responsibility for the reporting requirements and lead on critical seabird by-catch mitigation work in international fisheries forums.

Bovine Tuberculosis: Republic of Ireland

Huw Irranca-Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what evidence his Department has collected on the effect of badger culls conducted in Ireland on levels of bovine TB in that country.

George Eustice: The number of bovine TB reactors in the Republic of Ireland fell by over 65% between 1999 and 2013, from 44,903 to 15,612. This represents the lowest level since the eradication programme started in the 1950s. The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine's wildlife policy statement of April 2013 concludes that it is satisfied that the culling of infected badgers, which is underpinned by research studies and sound science, has led to a significant reduction in the incidence of TB in cattle over the past decade.
	http://www.agriculture.gov.ie/animalhealthwelfare/diseasecontrol/bovinetbbrucellosiseradicationschemes/wildlifepolicybadgers/

Flood Control

Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs pursuant to his answer of 24 March 2014, Official Report, column 33W, on flood control, what the reasons are for the disparity between the figures given in that answer and those contained in the Red Book Table 2.1 Line 34 for 2014-15 and 2015-16.

Dan Rogerson: The figures that I provided in my answers of 24 March 2014, Official Report, column 33W, relate to increases in Government funding for flood defence in England announced in the Budget 2014.
	The figures in the Red Book Table 2.1 Line 34 for 2014-15 and 2015-16 include consequential funding for the devolved Administrations. The presentation of these figures is consistent with the rest of the table and the standard way of presenting fiscal costs in Budgets.

Floods: EU Grants and Loans

Alison Seabeck: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what representations he has made to the EU Commission on the UK applying for and drawing down monies from the European Solidarity Fund following the recent flooding and storm damage; and what the deadline is for making any such bid.

Dan Rogerson: EU Solidarity Fund money is available to all member states suffering from large-scale natural disasters, but is subject to a number of eligibility requirements, including on the level of direct damages. Comparing the damage today to the 2007 floods, and following contact with the Commission, the Government’s assessment was that we had not met these conditions. The regulation governing the EUSF sets the deadline for applications as 10 weeks after the first damage caused by the disaster.

Floods: Somerset

Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment he has made of whether the estimated cost of the direct damage caused by recent flooding in Somerset meets the eligibility criteria for the European Union Solidarity Fund; and what discussions his Department has had with EU officials on an application to that fund.

Dan Rogerson: EU Solidarity Fund money is available to all member states suffering from large-scale natural disasters, but is subject to a number of eligibility requirements, including on the level of direct damages. Comparing the damage today to the 2007 floods, and following contact with the Commission, the Government’s assessment was that we had not met these conditions. The regulation governing the EUSF sets the deadline for applications as 10 weeks after the first damage caused by the disaster.

Hunting Act 2004

Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what plans he has to bring forward legislative proposals to amend the Hunting Act 2004.

George Eustice: The Government have no legislative plans to make an amendment to the Hunting Act 2004. However, the Government's position remains that we will bring forward a motion for a free vote on the repeal of the Hunting Act when parliamentary time allows.

Hunting Act 2004

Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs whether he has allocated staff resources or established a dedicated unit in his Department to deal with proposed amendments to the Hunting Act 2004.

George Eustice: Some departmental staff time has been used to look into the issues raised by Welsh farmers about lamb predation by foxes and the stalking and flushing out exemption of the Hunting Act 2004. This has not involved establishing a unit dedicated to this issue within the Department. Staff resources are allocated to look into issues as they arise on a flexible basis. The Government have no plans to bring forward legislation to make amendments to the Hunting Act 2004 in this Parliament.

Land Drainage

Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs pursuant to the answer of 26 February 2014, Official Report, column 558W, on land drainage, what funding will be made available to SUDS Approving Bodies to enable them to maintain balancing tanks and sustainable urban drainage systems; who will be responsible for providing that funding; and if he will make a statement.

Dan Rogerson: The Department will be consulting shortly on funding arrangements for the maintenance of sustainable drainage systems (SUDS) that will be subject to the provisions of schedule 3 of the Flood and Water Management Act 2010.

Land Drainage

Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs pursuant to the answer of 26 February 2014, Official Report, column 358W, on land drainage, for what reasons responsibility for maintaining balancing tanks and sustainable urban development systems is to be given to county or unitary authorities rather than to local planning authorities; and if he will make a statement.

Dan Rogerson: County and unitary authorities are the lead local flood authorities for their areas.

Nature Conservation: Crime

Angela Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what facilities exist for the retention and care of non-native wildlife species confiscated in the UK; where those facilities are located; and how many times such non-native wildlife species confiscated have been returned to the people or location where they were first confiscated.

George Eustice: Non-native wildlife specimens (including plants) may be retained for various reasons by the police, UK Border Force (UKBF), Royal Botanic Gardens Kew (RBG Kew), local authorities and other organisations such as the RSPCA.
	RBG Kew has a Plant Quarantine Unit and keeps records of all plant material entering its collections, but not records of confiscated specimens that are returned to the people or location they were confiscated from.
	UKBF re-homes seized wildlife after having consulted with the Joint Nature Conservation Committee, the UK's CITES scientific authority for fauna, on appropriate location. It has not been UK practice to return wildlife to countries of export as there is no guarantee of its return to the wild or that it will not re-enter illegal trade. UKBF does not disclose publically the locations where seized items are held. All seized animals remain the property of the Crown.
	No police-run facilities exist for the retention and care of non-native wildlife species confiscated in the UK: each case is dealt with on an ad-hoc basis. Information about returned specimens is not held centrally.
	DEFRA does not hold information about holding facilities used by local authorities and other organisations.

Slaughterhouses

Mike Freer: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if he will commission a study on measures to accurately record incidences of mis-stunning in abattoirs.

George Eustice: The Food Standards Agency already records instances of mis-stunning in slaughterhouses, so a study in this area is unnecessary. Details were given by the Minister for Public Health on 24 March 2014, Official Report, columns 132-34W:
	http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201314/cmhansrd/cm140324/text/140324w0005.htm#14032581000879

FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS

Argentina

Henry Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to the answer of 28 February 2014, Official Report, column 525W, on Argentina, how much his Department has spent under each cost heading in each of the last three years.

Hugo Swire: The development aid provided to the Government of Argentina is published with all UK aid spend on the website of the Department for International Development on:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/topics/international-aid-and-development
	an annual basis.
	Figures for 2013 will be published in autumn 2014. We currently forecast this to be much lower than previous years, due to the strict criteria now applied to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office's programme work in Argentina.

Commonwealth

Jake Berry: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps he has taken to increase the number of UK embassies and consulates through co-operation with Commonwealth Governments.

David Lidington: We are committed to strengthening our relationship with our Commonwealth partners and believe co-location of our embassies, where it is of mutual benefit, supports closer co-operation, as well as leading to efficiency savings. We are currently co-located with Canada in Rangoon, Port-au-Prince, Baghdad and Bamako, with New Zealand in Kabul and Bridgetown, and with Australia in Beirut and Vientiane. A number of other co-location projects with these Commonwealth partners are in the pipeline.

Gibraltar: Spain

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs 
	(1)  whether he has been informed that the Alcaidesa marina in La Linea has been partly constructed in British-Gibraltar territorial waters;
	(2)  how much of the Alcaidesa marina in La Linea has been constructed in British-Gibraltar territorial waters;
	(3)  what representations his Department made to the Spanish Government on the Alcaidesa marina in La Linea; when such representations were made and by whom; and what further steps he intends to take on this issue.

David Lidington: The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Richmond (Yorks) (Mr Hague) and I have been informed that less than 0.0001 square miles of Alcaidesa marina encroaches on British Gibraltar territorial waters (BGTW). My reply given to the hon. Member on 5 March 2014, Official Report, column 837W, noted that construction of the mole/sea wall and Alcaidesa marina in La Linea is historical fact. The mole was completed in the 1980s and the marina in 2008. A note verbale protesting the construction of the mole was issued in 1982. Earlier this year officials checked the records for 2008 and found no record of a protest at the completion of the marina. This Government have made our position on sovereignty over BGTW clear to the Government of Spain, including recently at a senior level.

Nuclear Security Summit

Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to the answer of 25 March 2014, Official Report, column 189W, on the nuclear security summit, which organisations made what suggestions to the UK's contribution to that summit.

Hugh Robertson: The UK contributed three statements to the nuclear security summit: a national statement, a progress report and a statement on the UK-led information security initiative. All three statements are publically available on the NSS website. No body from outside HM Government contributed written proposals for inclusion in the UK's statements. There were discussions between officials and the following organisations as the UK's contributions were being formulated: National Skills Academy Nuclear; World Institute of Nuclear Security; International Atomic Energy Agency; Kings College London; Vertic; and EU Joint Research Centre.

Venezuela

Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps the UK is taking to promote peaceful dialogue in Venezuela between the Government of that country and political opponents.

Hugo Swire: As I said in my statement of 26 March, I am deeply concerned about the situation in Venezuela. I am saddened by the deaths that have occurred, and condemn all acts of violence.
	We have called for all sides to take steps to avoid confrontation, reduce tensions and create the right conditions for genuine dialogue to take place. I have written to the Venezuelan Government to convey this message and offered the UK's assistance in the reconciliation process. I have spoken to ministerial colleagues in the region, both during my visit to South America and during the Union of South American Nations (UNASUR) commission's visit, to encourage their Governments to help promote dialogue in Venezuela. Our embassy in Caracas urges peaceful dialogue through its contacts with a range of actors in Venezuelan society.
	A commission of Foreign Ministers from the UNASUR group of countries visited Caracas 26-27 March to support and advise on dialogue between the parties. I welcome this positive first visit which involved meetings with a range contacts, including with President Maduro, Opposition leaders and civil society representatives.

Working Hours

Lucy Powell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what proportion of employees in his Department of each (a) Civil Service pay grade and (b) gender work (i) reduced hours, (ii) flexi-time, (iii) from home, (iv) a compressed working week, (v) job share, (vi) term-time only and (vii) part-time.

Hugh Robertson: Under the Foreign and Commonwealth Office's (FCO) flexible working policy, all staff can request to work flexibly. Many FCO staff in the UK and overseas have agreed successful flexible working patterns with their line managers.
	The FCO has been improving the management information system that staff use to record their flexible working patterns. This is a voluntary declaration and the current low level of declarations means there is not yet sufficient data to give a meaningful breakdown of all working patterns. According to the system, on 28 February 2014, there are 192 UK based staff, i.e. not including our locally engaged staff in our overseas posts, who are working part-time.

WORK AND PENSIONS

All-Party Groups

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what his Department's policy is on allowing officials to appear before all-party parliamentary groups.

Esther McVey: I refer the hon. Member to the reply given to PQ 193382 by the Minister for the Cabinet Office and Paymaster General, my right hon. Friend the Member for Horsham (Mr Maude), on 26 March 2014, Official Report, column 300W.

Atos Healthcare

Sheila Gilmore: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the ministerial statement of 27 March 2014, Official Report, columns 56-8WS, on Atos, how much Atos has paid to his Department in order to exit its contract early; and whether he plans for the new contract to provide for payments calculated on the number of assessments completed.

Michael Penning: The terms of the financial settlement are confidential between the parties.
	The Department is currently developing the financial model for the new contract and no decisions have been reached.

Employment and Support Allowance

Mark Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions for how many and what proportion of employment and support allowance claimants in the work-related activity group Atos has sought further medical evidence and opinion from the person's nominated professional.

Michael Penning: The information requested is not readily available and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Employment and Support Allowance

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people who have been given a prognosis that engagement in work is unlikely in the longer term have been placed in the work-related activity group for employment and support allowance since October 2008.

Michael Penning: The information requested is shown in the following table:
	
		
			 Outcomes of functional assessments by prognosis of two years or more for the ESA work-related activity group, Great Britain: October2008 to September 2013 
			  WRAG: Claimants with a prognosis of two years or more 
			 New claims—Initial assessment 11,800 
			 New claims—Repeat assessment 19,700 
			 Incapacity benefit reassessments 73,100 
		
	
	
		
			 Notes: 1. Figures are rounded to the nearest 100. 2. The outcome recorded is the final DWP decision maker's decision or the recommendation made by the Atos Healthcare Professional where the decision maker's decision is not yet available. 3. The data presented above come from benefit claims data held by the Department for Work and Pensions. They related to new and repeat ESA claims and incapacity benefit (IB) claims reassessments. In October 2008, ESA replaced IB for new claims. Starting with a trial in October 2010, and reaching a full scale national roll-out in April 2011, existing IB claims began to be phased out, with claimants reassessed to see if they qualify for ESA instead. Source: Data in the table above are derived from administrative data held by the DWP and assessment data provided by Atos Healthcare. 
		
	
	The reassessment of existing incapacity benefits claimants started in October 2010 with a trial in the Burnley and Aberdeen areas. These are included in the table.

Employment and Support Allowance

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  how many repeat employment and support allowance claimants have been placed in the work-related activity group with the prognosis that engagement in work is unlikely in the longer term since October 2008;
	(2)  how many new employment and support allowance claimants have been placed in the work-related activity group with the prognosis that engagement in work is unlikely in the longer term since October 2008.

Michael Penning: The information requested to answer both questions is shown in the following table:
	
		
			 Outcomes of functional assessments by prognosis of two years or more for the ESA work-related activity group, Great Britain: October 2008 to September 2013 
			  WRAG: Claimants with a prognosis of two years or more 
			 New claims—Initial assessment 11,800 
			 New claims—Repeat assessment 19,700 
			 Notes: 1. Figures are rounded to the nearest 100. 2. The outcome recorded is the final DWP decision maker's decision or the recommendation made by the Atos Healthcare Professional where the decision maker's decision is not yet available. 3. The data presented above come from benefit claims data held by the Department for Work and Pensions. They related to new and repeat ESA claims. In October 2008, ESA replaced IB for new claims. Starting with a trial in October 2010, and reaching a full scale national roll-out in April 2011, existing IB claims began to be phased out, with claimants reassessed to see if they qualify for ESA instead. Source: Data in the table above are derived from administrative data held by the DWP and assessment data provided by Atos Healthcare.

Housing Benefit: Social Rented Housing

Chris Bryant: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people in each parliamentary constituency are currently incurring the under-occupancy penalty.

Esther McVey: The information requested is published and can be found at:
	https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk
	Guidance on how to extract the information required can be found at:
	https://sw.stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/webapi/online-help/Stat-Xplore_User_Guide.htm

Incapacity Benefit

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people on incapacity benefit who have been given a prognosis that engagement in work is unlikely in the longer term have been placed in the work-related activity group since October 2010.

Michael Penning: The information requested is shown in the following table:
	
		
			 Outcomes of functional assessments by prognosis of 2 years or more for the ESA work-related activity group, Great Britain, October 2008 to September 2013 
			  WRAG: Claimants with a prognosis of 2 years or more 
			 New claims—Initial assessment 11,800 
			 New claims—Repeat assessment 19,700 
			 Incapacity benefit reassessments 73,100 
			 Notes: 1. Figures are rounded to the nearest 100. 2. The outcome recorded is the final DWP decision maker's decision or the recommendation made by the Atos Healthcare professional where the decision maker's decision is not yet available. 3. The data presented above come from benefit claims data held by the Department for Work and Pensions. They related to new and repeat ESA claims and incapacity benefit (IB) claims reassessments. In October 2008, ESA replaced IB for new claims. Starting with a trial in October 2010, and reaching a full scale national roll-out in April 2011, existing IB claims began to be phased out, with claimants reassessed to see if they qualify for ESA instead. Source: Data in the table are derived from administrative data held by the DWP and assessment data provided by Atos Healthcare. 
		
	
	The reassessment of existing incapacity benefits claimants started in October 2010 with a trial in the Burnley and Aberdeen areas. These are included in the table.

Jobcentre Plus

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether his Department collects information from Jobcentre Plus offices on the number of people referred to local advice providers to use telephones.

Esther McVey: It is not our policy to refer people to other organisations for the purposes of making a phone call.

Jobcentre Plus

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what guidance was given to Jobcentre Plus offices on supporting people internally rather than externally following the recent removal of warm phones.

Esther McVey: Jobcentre plus staff continue to fully support vulnerable claimants with benefit claims and job search. All offices are introducing an assisted service when customer access phones are removed.

Jobcentre Plus

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what recent guidance his Department has issued to Jobcentre Plus staff on how to advise clients on alternatives to warm phones for contacting Jobcentre Plus or applying for jobs by telephone.

Esther McVey: Warm phones have in the past, been used predominantly for dealing with benefit inquiries. Following the introduction of an assisted service for benefit inquiries and the removal of warm phones, we will provide controlled access to a telephone if a claimant needs to make a phone call to apply for a job.

Pensions

Gregg McClymont: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what assessment he has made of the effect of the planned changes to pensions on opt-out rates of auto-enrolment.

Steve Webb: The Budget announced that from April 2015, the tax rules for how people access their defined contribution pension savings will be simplified to allow individuals aged 55 or over to withdraw their savings however they wish, subject to their marginal rate of income tax.
	Allowing individuals to exercise greater choice over how they access their retirement savings may mean that some people who would have previously chosen to opt out may no longer do so. This is more likely to have an effect on the choices of older workers.

Pensions

Gregg McClymont: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what assessment he has made of the effect of the planned changes to pensions on the investment strategy of the National Employment Savings Trust.

Steve Webb: The investment strategy for the National Employment Savings Trust (NEST) is the responsibility of the NEST Trustees who will consider if, in the best interests of their members, there needs to be any change in NEST's investment approach.

Pensions Advisory Service

Gregg McClymont: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people received face to face guidance from the Pension Advisory Service in each of the last five years.

Steve Webb: The Pensions Advisory Service provides information and guidance over multiple distribution channels including by telephone, web chat, online and written enquiries and face to face via outreach activity. The outreach activity includes shows, forums and similar events. All guidance is tailored to the individuals’ personal circumstances.
	The data for the last five years are set out in the following table:
	
		
			  2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 2013-14 
			 Helpline customers:      
			 Includes calls, online enquiries, webchats and 1st party complaints 99,663 87,712 93,505 84,228 176,348 
		
	
	
		
			 Outreach work 26,457 7,577 3,786 1,091 31,400 
			 1 As at 28 February. 2 People spoken to at TPAS events/presentations. 3 Estimate to date

Social Fund

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many outstanding cases of social fund loan repayments his Department is currently pursuing; in what year each such loan was issued; what estimate he has made of the total value of such outstanding repayments; and how much his Department is paying a debt management service to pursue such repayments.

Steve Webb: At March 2013, there were 10,118,298 loans outstanding relating to 2,940,087 customers. The following table indicates the age of loans and their volumes and values.
	
		
			 Age of loan Loans Value (£000) 
			 Five years and over 1,837,896 218,840 
			 Between one and five years 5,898,911 595,737 
			 Less than one year 2,381,491 373,729 
			 Total 10,118,298 1,188,306 
		
	
	The Department pursues all debts available for recovery. Where we have difficulty with locating a customer and obtaining payment from them we will employ a private sector company to do this for us; for year ending March 2013 we paid £880,000 and recovered £6.1 million.
	Data have been included for the financial year 2012-13, the latest year for which the audited Social Fund White Paper Account is available. The 2013-14 account will be publicly available from July 2014.

Unemployed People: Cancer

Jamie Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what support his Department makes available to people who are unable to work while receiving treatment for cancer and what assets which cannot quickly be converted to enough money to cover consequential costs.

Esther McVey: People who are unable to work while receiving treatment for cancer may be entitled to claim employment and support allowance and, depending on the circumstances of them and their family, may be entitled to other benefits such as personal independence payment, housing benefit and council tax reduction.

Work Capability Assessment

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the average waiting time for a work capability assessment is for claimants in (a) Torbay local authority area, (b) the South West region and (c) England.

Michael Penning: The average waiting time for a work capability assessment in the period from March 2013 to February 2014 is as follows:
	
		
			  Working days (number) 
			 Torbay local authority area 1— 
			 The South West 110 
			 England 71 
			 1 The information is not available in respect of local authority areas. 
		
	
	We announced in a written ministerial statement on 27 March our plans to achieve a reduction in waiting times and next steps, including Atos Healthcare's withdrawal from delivery of work capability assessments in Great Britain before the end of the current contract.
	Atos Healthcare will continue to deliver work capability assessments until contract exit and will still be subject to a quality and service credit regime. We will continue to work with Atos to ensure it can deliver the best service possible to claimants until it leaves the contract.

ELECTORAL COMMISSION COMMITTEE

Electoral Register: Dudley

Ian Austin: To ask the hon. Member for South West Devon, representing the Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission, what the electoral figures were in each ward in the recent confirmation dry run conducted in Dudley metropolitan borough.

Gary Streeter: The Electoral Commission informs me that the confirmation dry run involved matching all entries on the electoral registers against the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) Customer Information System database. Entries would be marked as green if they matched with DWP, amber if they were a partial match or red if there was no match.
	Results for all wards are available on the Commission's website here:
	http://www.electoralcommission.org.uk/__data/assets/excel_doc/0003/163146/Confirmation-dry-run-2013-Results-Wards.xls
	The ward results for Dudley metropolitan borough council were as follows:
	
		
			 Percentage 
			 Ward Green matches Amber matches Red matches 
			 Amblecote 85.3 1.0 13.8 
			 Belle Vale 84.4 1.8 13.7 
			 Brierley Hill 81.6 1.7 16.7 
			 Brockmoor & Pensnett 85.6 1.1 13.3 
			 Castle & Priory 83.7 1.4 14.9 
			 Coseley East 86.2 1.0 12.8 
			 Cradley & Wollescote 83.9 1.7 14.4 
		
	
	
		
			 Gornal 87.9 1.0 11.1 
			 Halesowen North 84.7 1.3 13.9 
			 Halesowen South 87.6 1.2 11.2 
			 Hayley Green & Cradley South 88.7 1.0 10.3 
			 Kingswinford North & Wall Heath 89.0 1.1 9.8 
			 Kingswinford South 89.4 0.9 9.7 
			 Lye & Stourbridge North 84.0 1.7 14.4 
			 Netherton, Woodside & St Andrews 83.4 2.1 14.5 
			 Norton 88.0 1.1 10.9 
			 Pedmore & Stourbridge East 86.8 1.4 11.8 
			 Quarry Bank & Dudley Wood 85.8 1.3 13.0 
			 Sedgley 88.3 1.0 10.6 
			 St James's 83.7 1.5 14.8 
			 St Thomas's 80.6 2.2 17.1 
			 Upper Gornal & Woodsetton 87.6 0.9 11.5 
			 Wollaston & Stourbridge Town 84.6 1.2 14.1 
			 Wordsley 87.0 1.0 12.0

Electoral Register: South Wales

Stephen Doughty: To ask the hon. Member for South West Devon, representing the Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission, what the electoral registration figures were in each ward in the recent confirmation dry run conducted in (a) Cardiff county council and (b) Vale of Glamorgan council.

Gary Streeter: The Electoral Commission informs me that the confirmation dry run involved matching all entries on the electoral registers against the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) Customer Information System database. Entries would be marked as green if they matched with DWP, amber if they were a partial match or red if there was no match.
	Results for all wards are available on the Commission's website here:
	http://www.electoralcommission.org.uk/__data/assets/excel_doc/0003/163146/Confirmation-dry-run-2013-Results-Wards.xls
	The ward results for Cardiff council are as follows:
	
		
			 Percentage 
			 Ward Green matches Amber matches Red matches 
			 Adamsdown 55.0 7.2 37.8 
			 Butetown 55.3 3.8 41.0 
			 Caerau 84.1 2.0 13.9 
			 Canton 75.0 3.5 21.5 
			 Cathays 24.1 3.8 72.2 
			 Creigiau/St Fagans 84.8 1.6 13.6 
			 Cyncoed 78.6 1.7 19.7 
		
	
	
		
			 Ely 84.9 1.6 13.6 
			 Fairwater 84.0 1.6 14.4 
			 Gabalfa 38.0 3.1 58.9 
			 Grangetown 65.8 4.7 29.5 
			 Heath 81.7 1.4 16.9 
			 Lisvane 87.2 1.2 11.6 
			 Llandaff 78.8 1.9 19.2 
			 Llandaff North 82.4 1.7 15.9 
			 Llanishen 81.7 1.4 16.9 
			 Llanrumney 85.1 1.7 13.3 
			 Pentwyn 82.6 1.5 15.9 
			 Pentyrch 86.1 1.8 12.1 
			 Penylan 71.3 3.5 25.2 
			 Plasnewydd 42.5 8.3 49.2 
			 Pontprennau/old St Mellons 78.6 1.4 20.0 
			 Radyr 82.8 1.5 15.7 
			 Rhiwbina 87.2 1.3 11.5 
			 Riverside 62.0 8.1 29.9 
			 Rumney 84.0 2.4 13.7 
			 Splott 75.3 2.8 21.9 
			 Trowbridge 80.5 2.0 17.5 
			 Whitchurch and Tongwynlais 83.6 1.2 15.1 
		
	
	The ward results for the Vale of Glamorgan council are as follows:
	
		
			 Percentage 
			 Ward Green matches Amber matches Red matches 
			 Baruc 81.8 2.6 15.7 
			 Buttrills 83.0 2.0 15.0 
			 Cadoc 82.9 2.0 15.1 
			 Castleland 76.9 2.8 20.3 
			 Cornerswell 86.3 1.0 12.6 
			 Court 82.5 2.4 15.1 
			 Cowbridge 81.9 4.0 14.1 
			 Dinas Powys 86.6 2.0 11.4 
			 Dyfan 86.3 1.3 12.4 
			 Gibbonsdown 85.4 1.4 13.2 
			 Illtyd 85.8 1.6 12.7 
			 Llandough 84.5 1.7 13.8 
			 Llandow/Ewenny 82.0 5.2 12.8 
			 Llantwit Major 82.8 1.9 15.3 
			 Peterston-Super-Ely 81.3 5.0 13.7 
			 Plymouth 82.9 3.9 13.3 
			 Rhoose 84.3 2.3 13.4 
			 St Athan 82.2 2.3 15.5 
			 St Augustine's 73.8 3.8 22.4 
			 St Bride's Major 82.0 3.8 14.1 
			 Stanwell 82.7 2.5 14.8 
			 Sully 82.1 2.3 15.6 
			 Wenvoe 82.6 4.9 12.5

Electoral Register: West Midlands

Ian Austin: To ask the hon. Member for South West Devon, representing the Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission, what the electoral registration figures were in each ward in the recent confirmation dry run conducted in (a) Sandwell metropolitan borough, (b) Walsall metropolitan borough, (c) Wolverhampton metropolitan borough and (d) Birmingham city.

Gary Streeter: The Electoral Commission informs me that the confirmation dry run involved matching all entries on the electoral registers against the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) Customer Information System database. Entries would be marked as green if they matched with DWP, amber if they were a partial match or red if there was no match.
	Results for all wards are available on the Commission's website here:
	http://www.electoralcommission.org.uk/__data/assets/excel_doc/0003/163146/Confirmation-dry-run-2013-Results-Wards.xls
	The ward results for Sandwell council, Walsall council, Wolverhampton city council and Birmingham city council will be deposited in the Library.

INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Africa

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many portable kits for diagnosis of (a) HIV and (b) hepatitis her Department has delivered to Africa in each of the last three years.

Lynne Featherstone: The majority of DFID's support on HIV is through the Global Fund to fight AIDS, TB and Malaria (GFATM). Between 2002 and 2012, GFATM- supported programmes provided 89 million HIV counselling and testing sessions in sub-Saharan Africa; the UK provided approximately 9% of total funding to GFATM in this period.
	DFID contributes to prevention and control of diseases causing hepatitis in African countries through support to the GAVI Alliance (vaccines and immunisation), water, sanitation and hygiene programmes, and work to strengthen health systems and services.

Africa

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what funds her Department has allocated to each country in Africa to tackle wildlife crime.

Lynne Featherstone: DFID recognises that the Illegal Wildlife Trade (IWT) is a serious criminal industry, one that undermines sustainable economic development in some of the world's poorest countries, funds serious and organised crime, and threatens the existence of the world's most iconic species. As part of UK co-ordinated efforts to tackle IWT, DFID has committed £10 million to support DEFRA-led delivery of actions outlined in the London Conference Declaration, to include activities in African countries affected by IWT.

All-Party Groups

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what her Department's policy is on allowing officials to appear before all-party parliamentary groups.

Alan Duncan: I refer the hon. Member to the answer that was given by the Minister for the Cabinet Office and Paymaster General, my right hon. Friend the Member for Horsham (Mr Maude), on 26 March 2014, Official Report, column 300W.

Developing Countries: Water

Jim Dobbin: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what support the Government offered for World Water Day 2014.

Lynne Featherstone: This year the United Nations dedicated World Water Day to drawing attention to the challenge of meeting water and energy demands. DFID policy teams organised two events with external speakers to promote the day and water issues. The first was to raise awareness of the role of water security in promoting human and economic development, and the second to examine how private sector, technology and innovation can improve the functionality of water supplies.
	The Global Water Partnership, which is supported by DFID, used World Water Day to launch its new strategy “Towards 2020”, which focuses upon innovative and multi-sectoral approaches to tackle water resource management. The World Bank's Water Partnership Programme, also supported by DFID, used the day to highlight its Thirsty Energy Programme.

Development Aid

Martin Horwood: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps she is taking as co-chair of the Mexico High Level Meeting of the Global Partnership for Effective Development co-operation to ensure that future aid to the private sector respects the Busan principles.

Anas Sarwar: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps she is taking in her role as co-chair of the Mexico High Level Meeting of the Global Partnership for Effective Development to ensure that future development co-operation respects the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Developments Busan Principles (a) generally and (b) as they apply to aid allocated to private sector organisations.

Justine Greening: The Global Partnership for Effective Development Co-operation (GPEDC) is shortly to meet in Mexico to discuss principles of country ownership, results, transparency and inclusivity that are applicable across all sectors, including how business can contribute to development.

Barclays

Roger Godsiff: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assessment her Department has made of the policy of Barclays on the use of tax havens.

David Gauke: I have been asked to reply 
	on behalf of the Treasury.
	I am unable to comment on the tax affairs of individual companies.

HOME DEPARTMENT

Alcoholic Drinks

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what discussions she has had with representatives of the retail sector about measures that could be taken by shops selling alcohol to reduce the incidence of binge-drinking.

Norman Baker: Home Office Ministers have meetings with a wide variety of international partners, as well as organisations and individuals in the public and private sectors, as part of the process of policy development and delivery. Details of these meetings are passed to the Cabinet Office on a quarterly basis and are subsequently published on the Gov.uk website:
	http://data.gov.uk/dataset/ministerial-data-home-office

Antisocial Behaviour Orders

Jake Berry: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans she has to reform antisocial behaviour orders; and if she will make a statement.

Norman Baker: The Government’s reforms are contained in the Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014. The Act will introduce two new powers, a civil injunction and the criminal behaviour order, to replace antisocial behaviour orders. Unlike antisocial behaviour orders, the new powers will not focus solely on enforcement but can include positive requirements to ensure individuals address the underlying causes of their behaviour.

Crime: Greater Manchester

Mike Kane: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment she has made of the effect of recent changes to the funding of Greater Manchester police on crime rates in that region.

Damian Green: The funding settlement for the police is a challenging one. However, as the vast majority of forces, including Greater Manchester police, are demonstrating, it is manageable. The latest report from Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary (Policing in Austerity: Rising to the Challenge July 2013) found that crime is falling and the proportion of officers on the front line is increasing. The Government have protected the police from the additional 2014-15 reductions that were announced in the Chancellor of the Exchequer, my right hon. Friend the Member for Tatton (Mr Osborne), autumn statement of 5 December 2013, Official Report, columns 1101-13, which means the police will face a 3.3% cash reduction in central Government funding (5.75% in real terms) compared with 2013-14. Once future police precept income is taken into account, the reduction in overall funding is even lower.
	In the Greater Manchester police force areas, recorded crime fell by 7% between September 2012 and September 2013.

Driving: Licensing

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to the answer of 5 February 2014, Official Report, column 238W, on driving: licensing, what proportion of new drivers obtaining driving convictions were offered speed awareness courses in each year since 2010.

Damian Green: I refer the hon. Member to my answer of 27 March 2014, Official Report, column 372W.
	The number of drivers who opted for a speed awareness course rather than accept penalty points on their driving licence in 2010 was 447,724, in 2011 772,430, in 2012, 926,101 and in 2013 953,428. The offer of a speed awareness course is at the discretion of the police. To be deemed eligible, there must be no excessive speed or other offences committed at the same time. Information on previous motoring convictions is not taken into account.

Drugs: Misuse

Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department for what reasons the expert panel for the review into new psychoactive substances does not include representation from the public health sector.

Norman Baker: It does. Public health expertise is contributed to the New Psychoactive Substances review by:
	Dr Owen Bowden Jones, Consultant in Addiction Psychiatry, who is leading an initiative to develop clinical knowledge summaries for New Psychoactive Substances with support from Public Health England; Paul Griffiths, Head of Science at the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction, who received an award from the US National Institute for Drug Addiction in recognition of his role in developing the knowledge base on NPS; and the drug policy team at the Department of Health.

EU Justice and Home Affairs

Dominic Raab: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to the answer of 19 March 2014, Official Report, column 604W, on EU Justice and Home Affairs, with which countries the EU as a legal personality has concluded co-operation agreements in the field of justice and home affairs.

Karen Bradley: I refer my hon. Friend to the response given by the Minister for Europe, my right hon. Friend the Member for Aylesbury (Mr Lidington), on 24 March 2014, Official Report, column 70W. In addition, JHA agreements have also been concluded with Brazil, Ukraine and Moldova during the course of this Government which build on the borders and immigration aspects of the Schengen system, in which the UK does not participate.

Forced Marriage

Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people have been arrested for breach of a forced marriage protection order in each year since such orders came into force.

Norman Baker: The information requested is not collected centrally by the Home Office.
	Powers of arrest for breach of a forced marriage protection order are currently issued by the civil courts. Arrests for civil offences are not covered by the Home Office arrest collection.
	Breach of a forced marriage protection order will become an offence when section 120 of the Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014 comes into force in summer 2014.

Human Trafficking: Repatriation

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many (a) men and (b) women who are victims of human trafficking are nationals of non-EEA countries have received return and reintegration assistance through the Assisted Voluntary Returns for Irregular Migrants programme since April 2011; and how much was so made available to those trafficked from (i) inside and (ii) outside the EU.

Karen Bradley: 16 victims of trafficking (one male, 15 female) have received financial assistance under the programme since April 2011.
	While the Assisted Voluntary Return for Irregular Migrants (AVRIM) programme does not normally include financial assistance, a discretionary sum of up to £1000 is provided for specified vulnerable cases, and this includes victims of trafficking. Assisted Voluntary Return is only available to non-EEA nationals and the support is not dependent upon whether the individual has arrived from inside or outside the EU.
	The figures provided are sourced from a Home Office management information system which is not quality assured under National Statistics protocols and is subject to change due to internal data quality checking. Figures provided from this source do not constitute part of National Statistics and should be treated as provisional.

Immigration

Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much her Department has spent on legal fees in immigration cases when she has been (a) the defendant and (b) the appellant, in each of the last five years for which records are available.

James Brokenshire: The Home Office cannot report separately on expenditure on legal fees in immigration cases where the Secretary of State has been either defendant or appellant because it does not record data in the format required for such an analysis. The only way to answer this question would be to review all payments of litigation expenditure manually which would incur disproportionate cost.

Proceeds of Crime

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many assets of criminal origin have been repatriated from the UK to jurisdictions overseas in each year since 2008-09.

Karen Bradley: The serious and organised crime strategy sets out how the Government intend to improve the tackling of criminal finances both in the UK and overseas. This includes developing asset sharing agreements with other countries in order to improve international co-operation on asset recovery. Although no assets have been repatriated to another country since 2008-09, there are a number of ongoing investigations, particularly as part of the Arab Spring Asset Recovery Taskforce, about which it is not possible to comment further at this stage.

Riot Control Weapons: Greater London

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what recent representations she has received about the use of water cannon in London.

Damian Green: A number of representations have been received recently about the use of water cannon in London.
	The Secretary of State for the Home Department, my right hon. Friend the Member for Maidenhead (Mrs May), has also now received the formal request to authorise water cannon for use by the police in England and Wales. She is considering this request and will announce her decision in due course and lay the relevant information in the House Library.

Theft: Sheep

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what recent representations she has received on sheep rustling.

Norman Baker: The Home Office talks to a wide range of partners about rural crime and theft of particular commodities. However, we have not recently received any formal representations about sheep rustling.

Working Hours

Lucy Powell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what proportion of employees in her Department of what (a) Civil Service pay grade and (b) gender work (i) reduced hours, (ii) flexi-time, (iii) from home, (iv) a compressed working week, (v) job share, (vi) term-time only and (vii) part-time.

Karen Bradley: The proportion of Home Office employees with each working pattern by (a) Civil Service pay grade is shown in Table 1.
	The proportion of Home Office employees with each working pattern by (b) gender is shown in Table 2.
	
		
			 Table 1: (a) Home Office employees by working pattern and grade 
			 Percentage 
			  Grade equivalency  
			 Working pattern1 1. AA 2. AO 3. EO 4. HEO 5. SEO 6. G7 7. G6 8. SCS Total 
			 (i) Reduced hours 32.6 28.2 18.8 14.3 11.3 9.7 10.1 2.2 19.6 
			 (ii) Flexi-time 55.1 42.7 25.6 39.2 41.9 26.1 11.2 0.9 34.1 
			 (iii) From home 0.1 0.1 0.2 0.8 2.6 4.4 3.3 1.3 0.8 
			 (iv) Compressed working week 2.1 2.9 2.9 3.8 6.5 8.3 10.1 4.4 3.7 
			 (v) Job share 0.0 0.1 0.1 0.3 0.4 1.1 0.7 0.0 0.2 
		
	
	
		
			 (vi) Term-time only 1.9 1.5 0.8 0.8 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.0 0.9 
			 (vii) Part-time2 See part (i) 
			 1 Figures for parts (i) to (vi) cannot be summed as the working patterns listed are not mutually exclusive, for example an employee can work reduced hours and work flexi-time. 2 The Home Office defines working reduced hours and part time working as the same i.e. when an employee has a full-time equivalent (FTE) of less than 1 (full-time). Extract Date: 1 March 2014. Period Covered: All data is as at 28 February 2014. Organisational Coverage: Data includes the core Home Office (including Border Force, UK Visas and Immigration and Immigration Enforcement) and the Executive Agencies; HM Passport Office and the National Fraud Authority. Employee Coverage: Data is based on headcount of all current civil servants (paid and unpaid) as at 28 February 2014. Sources: Data for part (i) taken from Data View—the Home Office’s single source of Office for National Statistics compliant monthly snapshot corporate Human Resources data. Data for parts (ii) to (vi) taken from the Department's employee records system and validated and cleansed against Data View. 
		
	
	
		
			 Table 2: (b) Home Office employees by working pattern and gender 
			 Percentage 
			  Gender  
			 Working pattern1 Female Male Total 
			 (i) Reduced hours 31.6 6.7 19.6 
			 (ii) Flexi-time 39.5 28.2 34.1 
			 (iii) From home 0.8 0.8 0.8 
			 (iv) Compressed working week 4.6 2.8 3.7 
			 (v) Job share 0.4 0.1 0.2 
			 (vi) Term-time only 1.6 0.1 0.9 
			 (vii) Part-time2 See part (i) 
			 1 Figures for parts (i) to (vi) cannot be summed as the working patterns listed are not mutually exclusive, for example an employee can work reduced hours and work flexi-time. 2 The Home Office defines working reduced hours and part time working as the same i.e. when an employee has a full-time equivalent (FTE) of less than 1 (full-time). Extract Date: 1 March 2014. Period Covered: All data is as at 28 February 2014. Organisational Coverage: Data includes the core Home Office (including Border Force, UK Visas and Immigration and Immigration Enforcement) and the Executive Agencies; HM Passport Office and the National Fraud Authority. Employee Coverage: Data is based on headcount of all current civil servants (paid and unpaid) as at 28 February 2014. Sources: Data for part (i) taken from Data View—the Home Office’s single source of Office for National Statistics compliant monthly snapshot corporate Human Resources data. Data for parts (ii) to (vi) taken from the Department's employee records system and validated and cleansed against Data View.

DEFENCE

Afghanistan

Vernon Coaker: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what support British service personnel are providing to the Afghan National Security Forces to ensure that the elections in Afghanistan are free and fair.

Mark Francois: The UK is committed to helping the Afghans achieve credible, inclusive and transparent elections. Whilst the Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF) have lead security responsibility for Afghanistan, the UK supports ANSF operations by providing enablers such as medical evacuation, aviation and surveillance capabilities.

Afghanistan

Vernon Coaker: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what support the UK is offering to the (a) EU and (b) OSCE election monitoring missions to Afghanistan.

Mark Francois: The UK is not providing any direct support to the EU or OSCE election monitoring missions to Afghanistan.

Armed Forces Day: Northern Ireland

Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what plans his Department has to hold Armed Forces Day events in Northern Ireland in June 2014.

Philip Dunne: Armed Forces Day events provide opportunities for the nation to show its support for the armed forces community. These events are community-led and can come in many different forms, from the national event through to local events organised by councils, ex-service organisations, community groups and schools.
	The Ministry of Defence (MOD) does not hold armed forces events, apart from the national event held this year in Stirling, but we do invite local authorities and community organisations to consider hosting an event and to apply for funding from the MOD. Part-funding applications have been received for the Northern Ireland Regional Armed Forces Day event which is scheduled to take place in Ards on 21 June, events in Articlave on 27 and 28 June and for an event planned by Carrickfergus borough council to take place on 28 June. As further events are registered by their organisers, they will be published on the Armed Forces Day website:
	www.armedforcesday.org.uk

Army: Disciplinary Proceedings

Madeleine Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many personnel have been dismissed under AGAI 67 in each year since 2008; what the reasons were for each such dismissal; and if he will make a statement.

Philip Dunne: Within the British Army, Administrative Action is taken in accordance with the procedures set out in Army General Administrative Instructions Chapter 67, abbreviated to AGAI 67. It is a process of self-regulation that will be familiar to most civilian employers and employees, where action is taken to rehabilitate, censure or initiate sanctions to correct professional or personal failings. The administrative process involves investigation, reporting, determination, sanction and review by a higher authority. It is entirely separate from the Service Justice System.
	It may result in a range of outcomes from the assignment of extra duties, informal and formal interviews or rebuke to, in the most serious cases, termination of service.
	If individuals consider themselves to have been wronged by any administrative action, they are also entitled to submit a service complaint seeking redress of individual grievance.
	Central data relating to AGAI 67 discharges for the period before 2010 are incomplete and could be provided only at disproportionate cost. Data from 2010 are provided in the following table.
	
		
			  Reason Total 
			 2010 Civil Conviction/Caution 75 
			  Personal Failings 35 
			  Professional Failings 10 
			  Unspecified 24 
			    
			 2011 Civil Conviction/Caution 110 
		
	
	
		
			  Personal Failings 35 
			  Professional Failings * 
			  Unspecified 50 
			    
			 2012 Civil Conviction 70 
			  Personal Failings 15 
			  Professional Failings 10 
			  Unspecified 10 
			    
			 2013 Civil Conviction 80 
			  Personal Failings 15 
			  Professional Failings 5 
			  Unspecified 10 
			    
			 2014 (to date) Civil Conviction 30 
			  Personal Failings 5 
			  Professional Failings * 
			  Unspecified * 
		
	
	Figures have been rounded to the nearest 5 in accordance with departmental practice in order to protect individual data. The symbol ‘*’ has been used to indicate 1-4.

Cyprus

Madeleine Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many (a) allegations of, (b) investigations of, (c) prosecutions for and (d) convictions for (i) rape and (ii) sexual assault fell under the jurisdiction of the Service Police in Cyprus in each year since 2008.

Philip Dunne: The following table details allegations of rape and sexual assault investigated by the Service Police in Cyprus in each year since the implementation of the Armed Forces Act 2006 on 1 November 2009 to 25 March 2014.
	
		
			  Allegations made Referrals made Service Prosecuting Authority decision to prosecute Convictions Comments 
			 1 November 2009 - 31 December 2010      
			 Rape 1 1 0 0  
			 Attempted rape 0 0 0 0  
			 Sexual assault by penetration 1 1 1 1  
			 Sexual assault no penetration 1 1 0 0  
			       
			 1 January 2011 - 31 December 2011      
			 Rape 0 0 0 0  
			 Attempted rape 1 1 1 0  
			 Sexual assault by penetration 0 0 0 0  
			 Sexual assault no penetration 4 2 2 1  
			       
			 1 January 2012 - 31 December 2012      
			 Rape 2 2 1 0  
			 Attempted rape 0 0 0 0  
		
	
	
		
			 Sexual assault by penetration 1 1 0 0  
			 Sexual assault no penetration 5 2 2 1  
			       
			 1 January 2013 - 31 December 2013      
			 Rape 1 1 0 0 Service Prosecuting Authority decision pending 
			 Attempted rape 0 0 0 0  
			 Sexual assault by penetration 0 0 0 0  
			 Sexual assault no penetration 2 2 0 0  
			       
			 1 January 2014 - 25 March 2014      
			 Rape 0 0 0 0  
			 Attempted rape 0 0 0 0  
			 Sexual assault by penetration 0 0 0 0  
			 Sexual assault no penetration 1 0 0 0 Remains under Investigation

DSG Ashchurch

Madeleine Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  what steps he is taking to ensure that the value for money assessment prepared for the closure of DSG Ashchurch is in accord with Joint Service Protocol 507; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  when the value for money report for the proposed closure of the DSG Ashchurch site will be produced; and if he will make a statement.

Philip Dunne: The assessment study programme for Logistics Service Ashchurch is still being confirmed. Once undertaken, the study results will be used in development of a business case seeking approval for a selected solution. It is too early to say when the business case will be completed.
	Application of JSP 507 is required policy for all business cases. It will be applied in this case.

Egypt

Neil Parish: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what non-lethal military support his Department has provided to Egypt in each year since 2012.

Andrew Murrison: Since 2012 Egyptian personnel have undergone defence education and training in the UK, including Initial Officer Training, Advanced Command and Staff Course, and Royal College of Defence Studies attendance.

Employment Tribunals Service

Madeleine Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will place in the Library a copy of all Employment Tribunal judgements made against his Department since 2008 to date; and if he will make a statement.

Anna Soubry: The information will take time to collate. I will write to the hon. Member shortly.

Joint Strike Fighter Aircraft

Thomas Docherty: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he or officials of his Department will discuss the issues raised by Lieutenant General Christopher Bogdan of the US Air Force in his testimony on the F-35 programme to the US House Armed Services Tactical Air and Land Forces sub-committee with their US counterparts.

Philip Dunne: UK officials are embedded within the US Joint Strike Fighter Programme Office and are present at daily meetings chaired by Lt Gen Bogdan. Any programme issues are presented at these meetings, meaning the UK has full visibility of any F-35 concerns.
	All of the issues raised by Lt Gen Bogdan in his testimony to the House Armed Services Committee are well-known to the UK and are being actively managed by the programme.

Military Police

Madeleine Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many service police there were in (a) each branch of the armed forces and (b) the Special Investigations Branch in the last year for which data are available; how many such police have received specialist training in the investigation of sexual offences; and if he will make a statement.

Anna Soubry: The following table shows the number of naval service police, Army Royal Military Police and Royal Air Force Police in the armed forces and the number of personnel in each of the Special Investigation Branches (SIB), as of 1 February 2014.
	
		
			 Service Number of service police Number of personnel in the SIB 
			 Naval service 290 30 
			 Army 1,970 1170 
		
	
	
		
			 RAF 1,140 70 
			 1 Figures include Royal Military Police (SIB) personnel by trade group and officers currently serving in the RMP (SIB) Regiment. Note: Data has been rounded to the nearest 10 except when ending in 5, where numbers have been rounded to the nearest 20 to prevent systematic bias. 
		
	
	All service police undertake training at the Defence College of Policing and Guarding (DCPG). This includes general training in the form of the Initial Military Police Training Course, undertaken by personnel at the start of their careers; the Volume Crime Investigation Course, undertaken by personnel who have served for three-four years; and the Serious Crime Investigation Course, which all members of the SIB must pass before joining it. These courses incorporate training on the handling of sexual offences at various levels, including elements on sexual offences legislation; investigative techniques; forensic awareness; dealing with witnesses and suspects; the preservation of evidence; and interaction with victims.
	In addition, selected service police attend a range of specialist and advanced detective training at the DCPG and external, nationally recognised training providers (such as civilian police forces). This training includes the Senior Investigating Officer course, Crime Scene Analysis and Tier 3-5 Interviewing Courses, all of which are relevant to the investigation of a serious sexual offence.
	Service police also attend training primarily designed to cover the investigation of sexual offences. The following table shows the numbers who have attended these courses:
	
		
			  Course title and number of attendees 
			 Service Sexual Offences Investigation Training (SOIT) Achieving Best Evidence (ABE) Specialist Child Abuse Investigator Development Programme (SCAIDP) 
			 Naval service 20 40 - 
			 Army 30 25 10 
			 RAF 10 10 - 
			 ‘-’ means less than 5 Note: Data has been rounded to the nearest 10 except when ending in 5, where numbers have been rounded to the nearest 20 to prevent systematic bias.

NATO

James Arbuthnot: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the origins are of the NATO target for allies to spend 2% of gross domestic product on defence; and if he will make a statement.

Andrew Murrison: NATO Resource Guidance first emerged during the Cold War. NATO introduced the current guideline that allies should spend 2% of gross domestic product on defence in 2006.

Reserve Forces: Brigg

Andrew Percy: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many (a) men and (b) women there were in the reserve forces in Brigg and Goole constituency in the latest period for which figures are available.

Philip Dunne: Information on reserve forces is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Strategic Defence and Security Review

Vernon Coaker: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will publish the 60 questions relating to the future Strategic Defence and Security Review to which the Permanent Under-Secretary of his Department referred during his oral evidence to the Defence Select Committee on 25 March 2014.

Philip Hammond: The cross-Government lead on the next NSS and SDSR sits with Cabinet Office. The Ministry of Defence (MOD) is engaged with them and other interested Departments. MOD is in the very early stages of identifying those areas which may require further work or which we may wish to look at in 2015 as part of the Cabinet Office-led process. This evolving work supports the development of Government policy and I am therefore not able to provide this internal policy work.

TREASURY

Air Passenger Duty

Gregory Campbell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the effects of the removal of air passenger duty (APD) on the number of passengers travelling between Belfast and Newark International; and if he will take that assessment into account when considering changes to levels of APD for other flights from and within the UK.

Nicky Morgan: The Government do not monitor passenger volumes on individual routes. The published statistics on air passenger duty, including information on passenger numbers by band, are available at:
	https://www.uktradeinfo.com/Statistics/Pages/TaxAndDutyBulletins.aspx
	The published statistics on airport passenger volumes are available at:
	http://www.caa.co.uk/airportstatistics
	Budget 2014 announced the reform of air passenger duty with the abolition of bands C and D from 1 April 2015. This will eliminate the two highest rates of air passenger duty charged on flights to countries over 4,000 miles from Britain, cutting tax for millions for passengers to travelling to China, India, Brazil and many other emerging markets. This will mean that flights to South Asia and the Caribbean will pay tax at the lower band B rate.
	Air passenger duty is a relatively efficient and non-regressive tax, which makes an important contribution to the public finances.

All Party Groups

Chris Ruane: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what his Department's policy is on allowing officials to appear before all-party parliamentary groups.

Nicky Morgan: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to him by the Minister for the Cabinet Office and Paymaster General, my right hon. Friend the Member for Horsham (Mr Maude), on 26 March 2014, Official Report, column 300W.

Children: Day Care

Lucy Powell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how his Department calculates that 2.5 million eligible families would benefit from tax-free childcare in the consultation on Tax-free Childcare; and how his Department calculated the revised figure of 1.26 million eligible families in Delivering Tax-Free Childcare, the Government's response to the consultation on design and operation.

Nicky Morgan: The estimates from the consultation document have been refined using the latest survey data, removing overlaps with families with access to other policies, and reflecting the final policy following formal consultation.
	Details of the number of families who are eligible for the scheme, what makes someone eligible for the scheme, and the definition of qualifying childcare costs be found in Delivering Tax-Free Childcare: the Government's response to the consultation on design and operation:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/293084/PU1607_Tax_free_ Childcare_response.pdf

Coinage

Cathy Jamieson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the likely costs to businesses of the introduction of a new £1 coin.

Nicky Morgan: The Budget announced that the existing £1 coin will be replaced with a more modern and secure design. After 30 years in circulation, the current coin has become vulnerable to counterfeiting.
	There will be a public consultation this summer that will focus on how to manage impacts on industry and other affected parties. The Government are committed to working with industry to minimise costs and disruption.
	The Government plan for the new coin to be introduced in 2017. This timeline was decided expressly to allow industry three years to plan for the change.

Motor Vehicles: Excise Duties

Jonathan Edwards: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  what impact assessment he has made of his plans to introduce electronic Vehicle Excise Duty on (a) companies that trade cars and (b) the sale of second-hand cars; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what assessment he has made of the likely effect of the introduction of electronic Vehicle Excise Duty on (a) the transfer of personalised number plates and (b) car sale purchases.

Nicky Morgan: The autumn statement 2013 announced that the Government will legislate in Finance Bill 2014 to allow motorists to pay their vehicle excise duty (VED) by direct debit should they wish to do so, and to abolish the paper tax disc.
	Both of these measures, which will come into effect from 1 October 2014, are designed to reduce tax administration costs and burdens on motorists. The Tax Information and Impact Note, published on 10 December 2013, estimated that the abolition of the tax disc could provide business with administrative cost savings of around £7 million per year. Business will no longer incur postage costs by re-posting the tax disc to drivers or from having to return the tax disc to the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) for a VED refund.
	Under the move to a paperless tax disc, when a vehicle is sold the VED will no longer be transferable with that vehicle. The new vehicle buyer will need to purchase a new VED licence. This non-transferability of VED provides consumer protection by preventing a new vehicle owner unknowingly keeping an unlicensed vehicle if the previous vehicle owner subsequently seeks a refund from the DVLA. There will be no change to the process for transferring a personalised registration number plate when the vehicle is sold.

Occupational Pensions

Michael Weir: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make it his policy that applicants for means- tested benefits aged 55 years and above will not be deemed for purposes of benefit eligibility assessment to have vested in the capital and potential income held within their defined contribution pension pots.

David Gauke: Under existing rules the capital value of pension investments is disregarded when assessing entitlement to working age income related benefits. Actual pension payments are deducted from both income-based and contributory benefits. When an individual is over the qualifying age for pension credit and has a pension fund that they have not yet accessed, a notional income is deducted from any benefit entitlement.

Smuggling

Jake Berry: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many HM Revenue and Customs staff were employed on detection of (a) tobacco and (b) alcohol smuggling in each of the last five years.

Nicky Morgan: HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) does not employ staff specifically to detect tobacco and alcohol duty fraud. Instead, multi-disciplinary resources are deployed flexibly according to risk across all taxes administered by the Department. To assure the correct payment of tobacco and alcohol duty this involves HMRC activity all along the supply chains for these goods, and operating in partnership with other agencies such at Border Force and in other EU member states. The total resource expended by HMRC in tackling these frauds in each year from 2008-09 to 2012-13, expressed as full-time equivalents (FTE), is as follows:
	
		
			 FTE 
			 Financial year Tobacco Alcohol Total 
			 2008-09 661.8 446.5 1,108.3 
			 2009-10 697.2 478.2 1,175.4 
			 2010-11 737.6 553.7 1,291.3 
			 2011-12 765.1 443.7 1,208.8 
		
	
	
		
			 2012-13 758.5 502.8 1,261.3 
		
	
	These figures do not include staff in other organisations, such as Border Force, working to detect illicit tobacco and alcohol at the frontier.

Working Hours

Lucy Powell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what proportion of employees in his Department of each (a) Civil Service pay grade and (b) gender work (i) reduced hours, (ii) flexi-time, (iii) from home, (iv) a compressed working week, (v) job share, (vi) term-time only and (vii) part-time.

Nicky Morgan: The proportion of employees in HM Treasury at each of the pay grades work part-time as at the end of February 2014, are listed in the table (i). See table (ii) for the proportion by gender.
	
		
			 Table (i) 
			 Range/Grade Percentage 
			 Range B (AO/AA equivalent) 10.1 
			 Range C (EO equivalent) 13.2 
			 Range D (SEO/HEO equivalent) 3.1 
			 Range E (Grade 7 equivalent) 8.4 
			 Range E2 (Grade 6 equivalent) 12.5 
			 SCS 13.6 
			 Specialist grade 21.4 
		
	
	
		
			 Table (ii) 
			 Gender Percentage 
			 Male 1.3 
			 Female 6.9 
		
	
	All staff, apart from SCS, have the facility to work flex-time. However we do not record this-centrally.
	HM Treasury have not requested any staff to work reduced hours.
	The information requested on the proportion of employees in the department by civil service grade and gender who work, from home, a compressed working week, job share and term time only, would only be able to be provided at disproportionate cost, as we do not hold this information centrally.

EDUCATION

Academies

Nick Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Education if he will list all academy sponsors with 10 or more academies. [R]

Edward Timpson: Sponsors with 10 or more academies are as follows:
	Academies Enterprise Trust (AET)
	Academy Transformation Trust
	ARK Schools
	Cabot Learning Federation
	CfBT Education Trust
	Clifton Diocese
	David Ross Education Trust (DRET)
	Diocese of Salisbury Academies
	Diocese of Wakefield
	E-ACT
	Elliot Foundation
	Greenwood Dale Foundation Trust
	Harris Federation
	Kemnal Academy Trust, The (TKAT)
	Northern Education Trust
	Nottingham Roman Catholic Diocesan Education Service (NRCDES)
	Oasis Community Learning
	Ormiston Academies Trust
	Outwood Grange Academies Trust
	REAch2 Academy Trust
	School Partnership Trust Academies (SPTA)
	The Education Fellowship Trust
	The Griffin Schools Trust
	The Primary Academies Trust
	United Learning.

Adoption: Yorkshire and the Humber

Andrew Percy: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many children in (a) Brigg and Goole constituency and (b) Yorkshire and the Humber were adopted in each of the last five years.

Edward Timpson: The number of looked-after children in Yorkshire and the Humber who were adopted in the years ending 31 March 2009 to 2013 is shown in the table. Information at constituency level is not available.
	
		
			 Looked-after children in Yorkshire and the Humber 
			  Number 
			 2009 420 
			 2010 400 
			 2011 400 
			 2012 450 
			 2013 510 
		
	
	This information has been taken from table LAE1 of the Statistical First Release "Children Looked After by Local Authorities in England (including adoption and care leavers)—year ending 31 March 2013". This Statistical First Release also includes information at local authority level and can be found on the Department's website via the following link:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/children-looked-after-in-england-including-adoption

Children: Day Care

Stella Creasy: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what meetings officials in his Department have had with officials from the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills on the implications of the Consumer Rights Bill for (a) childcare voucher users and (b) providers of childcare services; and what the Civil Service grades of officials present were.

Elizabeth Truss: We are not aware of any meetings between officials from the Department for Education and those from the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) specifically on the implications of the Consumer Rights Bill for providers of childcare services.
	BIS consulted widely on consumer law reform in 2008 and 2012, and published a draft Bill for pre-legislative scrutiny in 2013. BIS has also completed full impact assessments for the provisions in the Bill.

Children: Protection

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Education on what dates the National Panel on Serious Case Reviews has met; and if he will publish the minutes of that Panel's meetings.

Edward Timpson: The national panel of independent experts on Serious Case Reviews has met on the following dates:
	25 July 2013
	9 September 2013
	11 November 2013
	13 January 2014
	10 February 2014
	10 March 2014.
	The key output of the panel meetings is letters from the panel to Local Safeguarding Children Boards making recommendations on the cases put to them, about the application of the SCR criteria, the appointment of reviewers and the publication of SCR reports. The letters refer to sensitive material not in the public domain and would not therefore be routinely publishable.

Children: Protection

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what discussions (a) he and (b) other Ministers in his Department have had with members of the National Panel on Serious Case Reviews.

Edward Timpson: The Secretary of State for Education, my right hon. Friend the Member for Surrey Heath (Michael Gove), and I had a meeting with the members of the panel of independent experts on Serious Case Reviews earlier this year.

Children: Protection

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what interaction the National Panel on Serious Case Reviews has had with the Local Safeguarding Children's Board Network.

Edward Timpson: The national panel of independent experts on Serious Case Reviews has met the chair of the Association of Independent Local Safeguarding Children Board Chairs twice, most recently on 10 March 2014.

Children: Protection

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Education to whom the National Panel on Serious Case Reviews is accountable; and what the terms of reference of that Panel are.

Edward Timpson: The members of national panel of independent experts on Serious Case Reviews (SCR) were appointed by the Secretary of State for Education and are ultimately accountable to him, though they operate independently.
	The role of the panel is set out in 'Working Together to Safeguard Children (2013)' as follows:
	"The role of the panel will be to support Local Safeguarding Children Boards (LSCB) in ensuring that appropriate action is taken to learn from serious incidents in all cases where the statutory criteria are met and to ensure that those lessons are shared through publication of final SCR reports. The panel will also report to the Government their views of how the SCR system is working".
	The panel's remit will include advising LSCBs about:
	1. application of the SCR criteria;
	2. appointment of reviewers; and
	3. publication of SCR reports.

Education: Employment

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what steps he is taking to increase links between education and employment.

Matthew Hancock: The Government's aim is to ensure that young people are equipped with the skills, experience and qualifications that employers want. The introduction of 16-19 study programmes will expand the provision of genuine work experience and work-related learning for all post-16 students. We have invested in new apprenticeships that are more employer-led than ever before, and introduced traineeships to give young people the skills and experience they need to compete successfully for a job. From September 2014, the Tech Level qualifications will provide a high-quality vocational alternative to A levels, leading to a recognised occupation.
	These and other reforms arising from Professor Alison Wolf’s 2011 review of vocational education have led to far-reaching improvements in vocational education. These include employer recognition of qualifications and simplified and better-funded arrangements for work experience.
	Our reforms to GCSEs and A levels will secure rigorous, challenging qualifications which are responsive to the needs of students and employers. New GCSEs in English and mathematics, which will provide greater assurance of literacy and numeracy, will be taught from September 2015, with the first examinations in summer 2017.

School Information (England) (Amendment) Regulations 2012

Nick Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Education pursuant to the answer of 24 March 2014, Official Report, columns 83-84W, on the School Information (England) (Amendment) Regulations 2012, if he will make an assessment of the level of compliance with those regulations among state-funded schools and academies.

David Laws: If a parent, or other party, believes that a school is not complying with the requirements, they are entitled to raise this with the governing body. If their complaint is not resolved and they believe that the school has failed to discharge its duty or acted unreasonably, they can raise their complaint with the Secretary of State.
	Ofsted routinely checks school websites ahead of inspection.

Schools: Musical Instruments

Harriet Harman: To ask the Secretary of State for Education 
	(1)  what proportion of all primary school age children in England were learning a musical instrument in (a) academies, (b) community schools, (c) free schools, (d) primary schools and (e) other schools in each of the last five years;
	(2)  what proportion of all secondary school age children in England were learning a musical instrument in (a) academies, (b) community schools, (c) free schools, (d) primary schools and (e) other schools in each of the last five years;
	(3)  what the three most popular instruments are for primary school children in England who are learning an instrument in school;
	(4)  what the three most popular instruments are for secondary school children in England who are learning an instrument in school;
	(5)  what proportion of primary school children in England learning an instrument in school (a) paid a charge and (b) received their tuition free of charge in each of the last five years.

Elizabeth Truss: The information requested is not held by the Department for Education. A recent report1 published by Arts Council England shows that in the academic year 2012/13, 437,975 pupils in years 1-9 received free whole class ensemble teaching. This is 8.6% of the national cohort. 430,998 pupils were in years 1-6 (12.4% of the cohort) and 6,977 were in years 7-9 (0.4% of the cohort).
	Many other children learn instruments in and out of school, but these figures are not collected or held centrally.
	1Available at:
	http://www.artscouncil.org.uk/funding/apply-funding/funding-programmes/music-education-hubs/

Science: Teaching Methods

Neil Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what conclusions he has drawn from the 3D Printer Project Report for enriching teaching across STEM and Design subjects in schools.

Elizabeth Truss: The schools involved in the 2012-13 pilot 3D Printer Project explored innovative ways of teaching STEM subjects, stimulating pupil interest and enriching the curriculum. Participating schools explored the potential benefits and challenges of using this technology in the curriculum and some shared their experiences with other schools wishing to introduce 3D printers. As set out in the report, feedback confirmed that 3D printers have significant potential as a teaching resource and can have a positive impact on pupil engagement and learning.
	In October the Secretary of State for Education, my right hon. Friend the Member for Surrey Heath (Michael Gove), commissioned a further 3D Printer Project, working with the Design and Technology Association and 42 teaching school alliances, to further develop our understanding of the educational opportunities offered by 3D printers. Like the pilot project, it is exploring new ways of teaching STEM subjects using a 3D printer, but with an emphasis on using it in ways that enhance learning over other approaches. The schools involved will develop and deliver continuous professional development (CPD) on using a 3D printer to teach STEM subjects to teachers across their teaching school alliances. We plan to make the best of the STEM teaching and CPD resources developed by the participants available to schools across England.

Special Educational Needs

Stephen McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Education pursuant to the answer of 12 March 2014, Official Report, columns 250-51W, on special educational needs, when he expects to make an announcement on the effect of reforms on funding for special educational needs.

David Laws: On 13 March, I announced proposals to allocate £350 million to our least fairly funded local areas in 2015-16. This is the biggest step towards fairer schools funding in a decade, and it puts us in a much better position to implement a national funding formula when the time is right.
	To allocate this £350 million as fairly as possible, we selected the characteristics we think contribute most to the attainment of pupils and viability of schools, and set indicative minimum funding levels for each of these. These characteristics include deprivation and low prior attainment, both of which show some correlation with low-cost, high incidence special educational needs (SEN). We looked at the average value attached by local authorities to these characteristics and used these as a basis for our proposed minimum funding levels. Applying these minimum funding levels could mean that some of the least fairly funded local authorities with high numbers of these pupils see a benefit.
	This additional £350 million applies to the schools block of the dedicated schools grant that local authorities receive. However, this is one of three notional blocks of funding, and local authorities are free to move money between their schools block, high needs block and early years block as they see fit. It is therefore possible that local authorities could choose to move the additional money to their high needs block to support children with high-cost special educational needs.
	Our proposals are still at the consultation stage. For more information, please see the consultation at the following address:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/fairer-schools-funding-2015-to-2016

Trade Unions

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Education whether his Department is (a) undertaking or (b) plans to undertake a review of the check-off union subscription provision.

Elizabeth Truss: The Department for Education is currently undertaking a review of the check-off union subscription provision.

UN Convention on the Rights of the Child

Stephen McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what systems his Department has in place to monitor the implementation of the Government’s commitment to give due consideration to the UN convention on the rights of the child when making new policy and legislation; and if he will make a statement.

Edward Timpson: The Department for Education co- ordinates the UK’s submission to the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC), on behalf of other Government Departments and the devolved Administrations, for the committee’s five-year review of implementation of the UNCRC in the UK. This report will be submitted shortly and will include examples of action taken to ensure that new policies and legislation which impact on children are compliant with the UNCRC.
	The Department has undertaken child’s rights impact assessments for the key policy and legislative changes in recent years, notably in respect of the Education Act 2011 and the Children and Families Act 2014. We also ensure that children’s rights issues are considered as part of the Home Affairs Committee clearance process.

University Technical Colleges

Nicholas Dakin: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many (a) 14, (b) 15, (c) 16, (d) 17 and (e) 18 year olds enrolled at each university technical college in 2013-14.

Edward Timpson: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given on 18 November 2013, Official Report, column 750W, for the number of pupils enrolled in university technical colleges in autumn 2013.
	Breakdowns by age will be published in the Statistical First Release, 'Schools, pupils and their characteristics: January 2014', in June 2014.

Working Hours

Lucy Powell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what proportion of employees in his Department of each (a) Civil Service pay grade and (b) gender work (i) reduced hours, (ii) flexi-time, (iii) from home, (iv) a compressed working week, (v) job share, (vi) term-time only and (vii) part-time.

Elizabeth Truss: The Department for Education recognises the key role played by flexible working patterns in recruiting and retaining a diverse workforce. Managers are required to ensure staff can achieve a good work-life balance and that business objectives are delivered through a positive approach to flexible working patterns. Working patterns are reviewed regularly to ensure that any arrangements meet business needs, The working patterns that are supported within the Department are:
	(a) Compressed hours working
	(b) Flexitime working
	(c) Home working
	(d) Job sharing
	(e) Partial retirement
	(f) Part-time working (also referred to as reduced hours working)
	(g) Part-year working (also includes term-time working)
	Working patterns (a) to (e) are agreed locally with line managers and, therefore, records are not held centrally.
	The following table provides information on the pay grade and gender of employees working full-time, part-time, full-time part-year and part-time part-year:
	
		
			 Department for Education (DFE) headcount by grade, gender and working pattern 
			   Percentage 
			  Headcount Full-time Part-time Full-time Part-year Part-time Part-year 
			 DFE 3,480 86.2 13.3 0.1 0.4 
			 EA AA SG Band 2 22 100.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 
			 EA AO 146 74.7 24.0 0.7 0.7 
			 EO 630 85.2 13.3 0.3 1.1 
			 HEO 665 85.9 13.7 0.2 0.3 
			 SEO 762 87.9 12.1 0.0 0.0 
			 GRADE 7 753 86.2 13.5 0.0 0.3 
			 GRADE 6 367 87.5 12.5 0.0 0.0 
			 SCS Band 1 99 87.9 11.1 0.0 1.0 
			 SCS Band 1A 3 100.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 
			 SCS Band 2 28 89.3 10.7 0.0 0.0 
			 SCS Band 3 4 100.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 
			 SCS 1 100.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 
			 Female 2,024 78.1 21.1 0.2 0.6 
			 Male 1,456 97.4 2.5 0.0 0.1 
			 Source: DFE, M1 as at 28 February 2014

JUSTICE

Criminal Proceedings

Bill Esterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the average length of time between judgement and sentencing in criminal trials in England was in the latest period for which figures are available; and what assessment he has made of the trends in the time taken.

Shailesh Vara: HMCTS can only answer this question for trials in the Crown court. The case management database for magistrates courts does not hold the date of conviction in a way we can calculate the time from conviction to sentence for all defendants so the only way we could answer the question would be to manually check each case file, which would incur disproportionate costs.
	The Crown court database does and the following table shows the average length between the latest conviction date in a trial and the date of sentence. The trend has seen the time between conviction and sentence falling from an average of 35.8 calendar days in 2007-08 to 24.6 calendar days in the first half of 2013-14. When a trial has more than one offence, the jury may not reach verdicts against all on the same day, and the sentence cannot take place until all offences have a verdict.
	
		
			 Average length between conviction and sentence in Crown court centres in England for defendants sentenced between April and September 2013 
			 Period Average calendar days 
			 April to September 2013 24.6 
			 2012-13 28.2 
			 2011-12 28.2 
			 2010-11 30.2 
			 2009-10 32.8 
			 2008-09 34.4 
			 2007-08 35.8 
			 Notes: 1. The average number of calendar days between the latest jury conviction date and the earliest substantial sentence date. 2. Includes cases where the defendant changes their plea to guilty during the trial. 3. This is internal management information run specifically to answer this question. The judiciary are able to sentence following conviction without the need for additional hearings as a result of initiatives currently in place. The judicially lead early guilty plea scheme aims to have guilty plea cases concluded at a single hearing. Similarly, the probation service are able to provide reports on the day of conviction to facilitate the sentencing of the defendant.

EU Justice and Home Affairs

Dominic Raab: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice with which countries the EU as a legal personality 
	(1)  is currently negotiating co-operation agreements in the field of justice and home affairs;
	(2)  has concluded co-operation agreements in the field of justice and home affairs.

Shailesh Vara: I refer to the response provided by the Minister for Europe, my right hon. Friend the Member for Aylesbury (Mr Lidington), on 24 March 2014, Official Report, column 70W. In addition, JHA agreements have been concluded between the EU and Brazil, Ukraine and Moldova during the course of this Government, which build on the borders and immigration aspects of the Schengen system, in which the UK does not participate.

Fines

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the total amount of fines levied on but uncollected from people found guilty of non-payment of (a) a television licence, (b) vehicle excise duty and (c) council tax was on 1 March 2014.

Shailesh Vara: It is not possible to identify from Her Majesty’s Courts and Tribunals systems the value of fines that remain outstanding for specific offences. This information could be provided only at disproportionate cost as identifying this would require a manual search of all fine accounts.

Forced Marriage

Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many forced marriage protection orders have been granted with a power of arrest attached in each year since such orders came into force.

Damian Green: Information on the number of forced marriage protection orders that have been granted in England and Wales with a power of arrest attached, for each year since such orders came into force, are available in table 2.8 of the Court Statistics Quarterly bulletin. The latest edition of this publication is available at the following link:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/court-statistics-quarterly-october-to-december-2013

Legal Profession: Industrial Disputes

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what estimate he has made of the cost to the public purse of the action by barristers on (a) 6 January 2014 and (b) 7 March 2014; and what his policy is on imposing a costs sanction on the barristers involved.

Shailesh Vara: We have not yet made an estimate of the cost to the taxpayer of the action by barristers on 6 January and 7 March 2014. The question of costs is a matter for judges to consider in individual cases under the provisions set out in the Prosecution of Offences Act 1985 (as amended).

Offences Against Children

Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many people have been convicted of an offence contrary to section (a) 1, where the victim was a child, and (b) 5 of the Sexual Offences Act 1956 in each of the last four years.

Damian Green: Our laws in these areas are robust and clear. The Government take very seriously all matters relating to the sexual abuse of children. Those who commit sexual offences are more likely to go to prison now than in 2010.
	The number of defendants convicted of offences under section 1 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 where the victim was a child under 16, together with all offences under sections 2, 5, 6 and 7 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 can be viewed in the table. As the Sexual Offences Act 2003 replaced the Sexual Offences Act 1956 for these offences all proceedings reflect that Act too, as per the footnote.
	Statistics in respect of victims of offences under section 2 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003—cannot be broken down by age.
	Also, my department's Court Proceedings Database holds information on criminal justice statistics only in England and Wales. Criminal Justice Statistics in Northern Ireland are a matter for the Department of Justice in Northern Ireland. Likewise, Criminal Justice Statistics in Scotland are a matter for the Scottish Government.
	
		
			 Offenders found guilty of offences under the Sexual Offences Act2003, England and Wales, 2008-121,2 
			  20083 2009 2010 2011 2012 
			 Section 14 294 332 326 372 340 
			 Section 25 128 141 168 186 186 
			 Section 56 179 180 224 270 247 
			 Section 67 88 89 118 115 111 
		
	
	
		
			 Section 78 355 321 350 376 320 
			 1 The figures given in the table relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offences for which they were dealt with. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences it is the offence for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe. 2 Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. 3 Excludes data for Cardiff magistrates court for April, July and August 2008. 4 Section 1 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 includes rape of a male or female child aged under 16 and attempted rape of male or female child under 16. 5 Section 2 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 describes offences of assault by penetration, but does not separately identify the age of the victim 6 Section 5 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 describes offences of rape and attempted rape of children under 13 by a male. 7 S6 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 describes offences of assault of children under 13 by penetration. 8 S7 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 describes offences of sexual assault of children under 13. Note: Section 1 and 5 data also includes those proceedings and outcomes under the Sexual Offences Act 1956 Source: Justice Statistics Analytical Services—Ministry of Justice.

Offences Against Children

Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many people have been convicted of an offence contrary to sections (a) 1 and 2 where the victim was a child, and (b) 5, 6 and 7 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 in each of the last four years.

Damian Green: Our laws in these areas are robust and clear. The Government take very seriously all matters relating to the sexual abuse of children. Those who commit sexual offences are more likely to go to prison now than in 2010.
	The number of defendants convicted of offences under section 1 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 where the victim was a child under 16, together with all offences under sections 2, 5, 6 and 7 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 can be viewed in the table. As the Sexual Offences Act 2003 replaced the Sexual Offences Act 1956 for these offences all proceedings reflect that Act too, as per the footnote.
	Statistics in respect of victims of offences under section 2 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 cannot be broken down by age.
	Also, my Department's Court Proceedings Database holds information on criminal justice statistics only in England and Wales. Criminal Justice Statistics in Northern Ireland are a matter for the Department of Justice in Northern Ireland. Likewise, Criminal Justice Statistics in Scotland are a matter for the Scottish Government.
	
		
			 Offenders found guilty of offences under the Sexual Offences Act 2003, England and Wales, 2008-121, 2 
			  20083 2009 2010 2011 2012 
			 Section 14 294 332 326 372 340 
			 Section 25 128 141 168 186 186 
			 Section 56 179 180 224 270 247 
			 Section 67 88 89 118 115 111 
			 Section 78 355 321 350 376 320 
			 1 The figures given in the table relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offences for which they were dealt with. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences it is the offence for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe. 2 Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. 3 Excludes data for Cardiff magistrates court for April, July and August 2008. 4 Section 1 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 includes rape of a male or female child aged under 16 and attempted rape of male or female child under 16 5 Section 2 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 describes offences of assault by penetration, but does not separately identify the age of the victim 6 Section 5 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 describes offences of rape and attempted rape of children under 13 by a male 7 S6 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 describes offences of assault of children under 13 by penetration 8 S7 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 describes offences of sexual assault of children under 13. Note: Section 1 and 5 data also includes those proceedings and outcomes under the Sexual Offences Act 1956. Source: Justice Statistics Analytical Services-Ministry of Justice.

Offences Against Children: Northern Ireland

Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many people have been convicted of an offence contrary to articles (a) 5 and 6, where the victim was a child, and (b) 12, 13 and 14 of the Sexual Offences (Northern Ireland) Order 2008 in each of the last four years.

Damian Green: Our laws in these areas are robust and clear. The Government take very seriously all matters relating to the sexual abuse of children. Those who commit sexual offences are more likely to go to prison now than in 2010.
	The number of defendants convicted of offences under section 1 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 where the victim was a child under 16, together with all offences under sections 2, 5, 6 and 7 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 can be viewed in the table. As the Sexual Offences Act 2003 replaced the Sexual Offences Act 1956 for these offences all proceedings reflect that Act too, as per the footnote.
	Statistics in respect of victims of offences under section 2 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 cannot be broken down by age.
	Also, my Department's Court Proceedings Database holds information on criminal justice statistics only in England and Wales. Criminal justice statistics in Northern Ireland are a matter for the Department of Justice in Northern Ireland. Likewise, criminal justice statistics in Scotland are a matter for the Scottish Government.
	
		
			 Offenders found guilty of offences under the Sexual Offences Act 2003, England and Wales, 2008-121, 2 
			 Number 
			  20083 2009 2010 2011 2012 
			 Section 14 294 332 326 372 340 
			 Section 25 128 141 168 186 186 
			 Section 56 179 180 224 270 247 
			 Section 67 88 89 118 115 111 
			 Section 78 355 321 350 376 320 
			 1 The figures given in the table relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offences for which they were dealt with. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences it is the offence for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe. 2 Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. 3 Excludes data for Cardiff magistrates court for April, July and August 2008. 4 Section 1 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 includes rape of a male or female child aged under 16 and attempted rape of male or female child under 16. 5 Section 2 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 describes offences of assault by penetration, but does not separately identify the age of the victim. 6 Section 5 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 describes offences of rape and attempted rape of children under 13 by a male. 7 Section 6 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 describes offences of assault of children under 13 by penetration. 8 Section 7 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 describes offences of sexual assault of children under 13. Note: Section 1 and 5 data also includes those proceedings and outcomes under the Sexual Offences Act 1956. Source: Justice Statistics Analytical Services—Ministry of Justice.

Offences Against Children: Scotland

Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many people have been convicted of an offence contrary to sections (a) 1 and 2, where the victim was a child, and (b) 18, 19 and 20(1), (2)(a) and (3) of the Sexual Offences (Scotland) Act 2009 in each of the last four years.

Damian Green: Our laws in these areas are robust and clear. The Government take very seriously all matters relating to the sexual abuse of children. Those who commit sexual offences are more likely to go to prison now than in 2010.
	The number of defendants convicted of offences under section 1 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 where the victim was a child under 16, together with all offences under sections 2, 5, 6 and 7 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 can be viewed in the table. As the Sexual Offences Act 2003 replaced the Sexual Offences Act 1956 for these offences all proceedings reflect that Act too, as per the footnote.
	Statistics in respect of victims of offences under section 2 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 cannot be broken down by age.
	Also, my department's Court Proceedings Database holds information on criminal justice statistics only in England and Wales. Criminal Justice Statistics in Northern Ireland are a matter for the Department of Justice in Northern Ireland. Likewise, Criminal Justice Statistics in Scotland are a matter for the Scottish Government.
	
		
			 Offenders found guilty of offences under the Sexual Offences Act2003, England and Wales, 2008 to 20121,2 
			  20083 2009 2010 2011 2012 
			 Section 14 294 332 326 372 340 
			 Section 25 128 141 168 186 186 
			 Section 56 179 180 224 270 247 
			 Section 67 88 89 118 115 111 
			 Section 78 355 321 350 376 320 
			 1 The figures given in the table relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offences for which they were dealt with. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences it is the offence for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe. 2 Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. 3 Excludes data for Cardiff magistrates court for April, July and August 2008. 4 Section 1 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 includes rape of a male or female child aged under 16 and attempted rape of male or female child under 16. 
		
	
	
		
			 5 Section 2 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 describes offences of assault by penetration, but does not separately identify the age of the victim 6 Section 5 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 describes offences of rape and attempted rape of children under 13 by a male. 7 S6 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 describes offences of assault of children under 13 by penetration. 8 S7 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 describes offences of sexual assault of children under 13. Note: Section 1 and 5 data also includes those proceedings and outcomes under the Sexual Offences Act 1956 Source: Justice Statistics Analytical Services—Ministry of Justice.

Prisoners' Release and Escapes

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice 
	(1)  how many of each category of prisoner released from prison in error since May 2010 are still at large;
	(2)  how many prisoners in each category of prisoner who have absconded from prisons since May 2010 remain at large;
	(3)  how many escapes by prisoners there have been while being transported, by category of prisoner, in each month since May 2010;
	(4)  how many absconds from prison there have been, by month and category of prisoner, since May 2010.

Jeremy Wright: Releases in error are taken very seriously and action has been taken to tighten processes and focus managers' attention in this area. Releases in error are infrequent and all incidents are subject to investigation. The majority of prisoners released in error are returned to custody quickly. In the 12 months to September 2013 there were 46 releases in error from prison, which equated to 0.06% of all discharges from prison. This compares to 68 in 2009-10.
	The following table shows the number of prisoners who have not subsequently returned to custody following a release in error from prison between May 2010 and September 2013 and broken down by the security category recorded on the National Offender Management Information System. This information is accurate as of 4 March 2014.
	
		
			 Table 1: Number of prisoners not subsequently returned to custody following release in error from prison between May 2010 and September 2013, by category 
			 Category Number 
			 Category C 13 
			 Female (Closed) 3 
			 Uncategorised 8 
		
	
	It is important to note that not all prisoners released in error will be unlawfully at large and subject to recall. For example, they may be unconvicted prisoners released in error whose cases have been concluded since their release without a custodial sentence.
	These figures have been drawn from live administrative data systems which may be amended at any time. Although care is taken when processing and analysing the returns, the detail collected is subject to the inaccuracies inherent in any large scale recording system.
	The number of releases in error may change should further incidents be reported.
	The number of absconds has come down sharply from a level of 947 in 2002-03 to 204 in 2012-13.
	Table 2 provides a breakdown of the number of absconds, by month between May 2010 and March 2013. Table 3 shows the number of absconders still unlawfully at large, by category, having absconded between May 2010 and March 2013. It is not possible to provide details of absconds by category of prisoner. The category of prisoner at time of release in error is not recorded in incident reports and live data show details of the current security category only; it has therefore, only been possible to provide the category of those who are currently unlawfully at large (table 3). Prisoners held in immigration removal centres are not subject to security categorisation. Over 97% of prisoners who abscond are re-captured and returned to custody. On re-capture, the prisoner will be returned to a closed prison and referred to the police for consideration for prosecution for having been unlawfully at large.
	
		
			 Table 2: Number of absconds between May 2010 and March 2013, by month 
			  Number of absconds 
			 May 2010 23 
			 June 2010 21 
			 July 2010 17 
			 August 2010 25 
			 September 2010 28 
			 October 2010 17 
			 November 2010 15 
			 December 2010 23 
			 January 2011 11 
			 February 2011 15 
			 March 2011 14 
			 April 2011 8 
			 May 2011 12 
			 June 2011 16 
			 July 2011 13 
			 August 2011 17 
			 September 2011 16 
			 October 2011 19 
			 November 2011 16 
			 December 2011 17 
			 January 2012 9 
			 February 2012 12 
			 March 2012 20 
			 April 2012 21 
			 May 2012 15 
			 June 2012 17 
			 July 2012 20 
			 August 2012 23 
			 September 2012 15 
			 October 2012 15 
			 November 2012 12 
			 December 2012 20 
			 January 2013 15 
			 February 2013 16 
			 March 2013 15 
		
	
	
		
			 Table 3: Number of prisoners unlawfully at large following abscond between May 2010 and March 2013, by category 
			 Category Number 
			 D 16 
			 Not categorised 2 
		
	
	These figures have been drawn from live administrative data systems which may be amended at any time. Although care is taken when processing and analysing the returns, the detail collected is subject to the inaccuracies inherent in any large scale recording system.
	Escapes from transit include escapes from Prison Service and Contractor Escorts. The majority of escorts take place without incident and escapes whilst in transit are rare; there have been 10 since May 2010. This should be seen in relation to the 871,802 prisoners handled by the escort service in 2012-13 alone.
	Table 4 shows the number of escapes in transit, in each month between May 2010 and March 2013. All these prisoners have subsequently been recaptured.
	
		
			 Table 4: Month and category of prisoners who escaped in transit between May 2010 and March 2013 
			  Category 
			 May 2010 Uncategorised 
			 May 2011 Cat B 
			 July 2011 Uncategorised 
			 July 2011 Uncategorised 
			 August 2011 Uncategorised 
			 December 2011 Uncategorised 
			 January 2012 Uncategorised 
			 January 2012 Potential Category A 
			 October 2012 Uncategorised 
			 November 2012 Uncategorised 
		
	
	The number of both escapes and absconds have reduced significantly in recent years. Figures for the number of escapes and absconds since 1995 are provided in the Prison Digest contained in the Prison and Probation Trusts Performance Statistics. This can be found at
	https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/225234/prison-performance-digest-12-13.xls

Probation: Islington

Sarah Champion: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what assessment he has made of the effect of the Integrated Offender Management model piloted in the London borough of Islington on reoffending rates in that area.

Damian Green: I have been asked to reply 
	on behalf of the Home Office.
	Integrated Offender Management is an important approach to cutting crime and reoffending in local areas. One of the key strengths of the approach is that the local model should be responsive to local needs and priorities as identified by the agencies and the partners in the area. For this reason, we have not imposed any particular model of Integrated Offender Management on areas, nor do we performance manage from Whitehall the crime and reoffending outcomes that local partners in areas such as the London borough of Islington may be achieving through their local approach.

RSPCA

Karl McCartney: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice if he will place in the Library a copy of the evidence submitted by his Department to the independent review of the RSCPA's prosecutions activity being carried out by Mr Stephen Wooler.

Damian Green: The Ministry of Justice has not submitted evidence to Mr Stephen Wooler's independent review of private prosecutions by the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, nor have we received a request to do so.